A Dangerous Proposal
by JBGilroy
Summary: A year after Danny saved the world and his status as a halfa became public knowledge a mysterious ghost appears to give him a puzzling message. Is this ghost a threat or a new ally? (rated T to be safe)
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, another story and another fanfic!**

 **I've kind of noticed that most of my fanfics are crossovers and I wanted to do a story with just Danny, so here it is. It's also a story I wrote quite a while ago and has been sitting in my archives. Let me know what you think.**

 **It's based a year after the events of Phantom Planet. None of my previous fanfics are referenced or are canon. Which I've also noticed that I do a lot. No idea if that's a good or bad thing, but wanted to do something fresh…**

 **I created a new ghost for this… I don't want to say too much in case I give anything away. So, I'll leave it at that.**

 **By the way, I don't own Danny Phantom.**

 **And so, on with the story…**

The bus pulled away and left two girls standing alone on the roadside with heavy hold-all bags over each of their shoulders. One was a long-haired red head wearing jeans and a black blouse and the other was a short haired brunette in a short white dress and denim jacket. Jazz rolled her eyes. No one was waiting for her again. Jazz was home for spring break.

"Wasn't Danny supposed to meet up with us?" Jazz's friend, Bianca, recalled. Jazz nodded. Jazz had decided to leave her car in Amity Park when she left for college, mostly because she lived on campus and parking was limited.

"Something probably came up. Come on, we'll head home instead," Jazz suggested and led the way down the main street of Amity Park, towards Fenton Works.

Bianca pouted beside her. Jazz laughed softly at her friend's disappointment.

"Don't worry Bianca, you'll meet Danny later," Jazz reassured her.

"I still can't believe that Danny Phantom is your brother!" Bianca exclaimed excitedly. Jazz smiled.

"He's Danny _Fenton_ too you know," Jazz reminded Bianca. It annoyed her that so many people forgot that Danny wasn't just Phantom. He was a person too. Bianca nodded.

"I know, sorry Jazz. Does having two identities affect his mind?" Bianca asked. Bianca was also studying psychology. Jazz shook her head.

"Not really. There are slight differences. Like Phantom is more serious and protective and Fenton is really care-free and forgetful but nothing you'd notice unless you knew him really well. Considering the stuff he's been through, I would have thought there'd be something but he's fine," Jazz answered knowingly. Bianca nodded.

Suddenly two scooters raced down the road passed them.

"Woah, what's the speed limit here?" Bianca remarked angrily staring at the receding scooters. Jazz scowled at the scooters.

"I think that was Sam and Tucker," Jazz replied uncertainly.

"Sam and Tucker? Aren't they Danny's sidekicks?" Bianca asked.

"Friends, Bianca, they're his friends. And it looked like they were in a rush. Something must have happened. Come on," Jazz deduced and ran after the two speeding scooters. Bianca frowned but chased after Jazz without another word.

The scooters finally stopped outside a warehouse on the docks and Jazz ran after them, panting.

"Sam! Tucker! What's going on?" Jazz shouted after them breathlessly. Sam and Tucker turned to her and grinned.

"Oh hey Jazz. Isn't your bus at four?" Tucker greeted her.

"It was. Danny wasn't there," Jazz confirmed with an edge in her voice. The teens flinched.

"Yeah, he was busy. Still is actually. He's in there," Sam replied and pointed to the warehouse.

Sam was wearing her usual black attire with the only difference being the black and white jacket Danny had gotten her for Christmas. It was part of the Danny Phantom range of clothing from the mall. Sam had graciously ignored the fact that Danny had been given it free of charge. Tucker wore his usual outfit too, complete with red beret and grey back pack. He had new glasses but they were almost identical to his previous pair. Bianca finally joined them.

"This is my friend, Bianca. She's going to stay with us for the week. Bianca, this is Sam, Danny's girlfriend and Tucker, Danny's best friend," Jazz introduced. Bianca nodded to the teens breathlessly.

Suddenly a loud crash inside the warehouse made the four people outside cringe.

"So what's going on?" Jazz prompted with a nervous glance at the warehouse. Sam was about to answer.

"Guys! Move!" A boy screamed. Jazz and Tucker jumped to the side and managed to avoid Danny Phantom as he fell past them. He landed on the sidewalk with a grunt.

"Ow," he groaned as he got to his feet.

"Danny? Are you alright?" Jazz asked and began to fuss over him.

"I'm fine Jazz… wait Jazz. Oh man, I was meant to meet up with you wasn't I?" Danny recalled and slapped his forehead. Jazz smirked.

"Yeah, but it's alright little brother. So who's giving you bother?" Jazz replied gently. Ghost hunting always took first priority as far as Jazz was concerned. Danny frowned in annoyance.

A fat blue ghost emerged from the warehouse and laughed loudly.

"Ha ha! You can't stop the Box Ghost! For I am able to control all boxes, rectangular and square! Fear me!" the Box Ghost gloated happily. Danny growled in anger and shot the ghost with a green ghost ray. The Box Ghost dodged it before flying off towards the school.

"Get back here!" Danny shouted before taking off after the ghost.

"The Box Ghost?" Jazz asked loudly. Sam and Tucker laughed.

"Yeah, Danny's been chasing him for half an hour now. His ghost sense went off in the park," Sam giggled.

"That's on the other side of town," Jazz recalled. Tucker laughed again and nodded.

"Yep. He's gotten really fast recently. Actually yesterday Danny got detention for being late to class because of the Box Ghost. Mr. Lancer didn't think "sorry I'm late, I was busy chasing the Box Ghost all over town" was a good enough excuse," Tucker explained.

"He has a thermos right?" Jazz inquired. Sam and Tucker nodded.

"Course he does. The Box Ghost got away yesterday. Danny was furious," Sam revealed with a smirk.

"I really wouldn't want to be the Box Ghost when Danny finally catches up with him," Tucker added, glancing back in the direction both ghosts had disappeared off in.

 **So, really just opening the story here with my attempt at humour. The story does take a dark and serious turn later so enjoy the light hearted stuff while it's here. I always thought it would be funny if Danny had trouble catching the Box Ghost after so long ghost hunting… let me know what you guys think.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

Sam and Tucker gave Jazz and Bianca a lift as they chased after Danny. By the time they'd caught up with him, he was beating up the Box Ghost just outside Casper High.

"And don't make me chase you everywhere again!" Danny finished as he threw the ghost to the ground and pulled out the thermos clipped to his belt. In a flash of blue light, the Box Ghost was pulled inside the thermos, screaming in anguish. Danny slammed the thermos lid on top and clipped it to his belt.

"Finally!" he growled to himself.

"Hey, you alright Danny?" Sam asked loudly, as she walked cautiously up to her boyfriend. Danny looked up at his girlfriend and the remainder of his anger evaporated instantly as he gave her a goofy grin.

"I'm fine Sam. Thanks. I just had to show the Box Ghost whose boss. Can't let him go back to the Ghost Zone and telling all the ghosts that I've lost my touch," Danny replied with a small laugh. He draped his arm around her shoulders and she smiled at him and leant into his side. He was still in ghost form and the touch sent shivers down her spine despite the thick jacket she now owned, but the feeling was normal for her. In fact, she associated the feeling with him and so enjoyed the sensation.

The two teens walked back to Tucker, Jazz and Bianca. Danny gave Jazz a small wave with his free hand.

"Hey, I'm sorry for not being at the bus station like I said I would be. I've been chasing the Box Ghost for a couple of days now. He's gotten a lot smarter since he finished his community service with Pandora. Must have gotten tips or something," Danny apologised.

"It's fine little brother. Sam and Tucker told me about yesterday," Jazz informed him. Danny frowned.

"That detention? There was only one of the times. I was chasing him half the night too," Danny replied. Tucker scowled.

"We didn't know that. You should have called us," Tucker retorted defensively. Danny shrugged, still with his arm around Sam.

"It's the Box Ghost. I didn't need back up. I just needed to catch up to him," Danny remarked dismissively.

"Oh, Danny, this is my friend, Bianca. She's going to stay with us for spring break," Jazz introduced Bianca and shrugged her hold-all bag higher on her shoulder. Danny put out his free hand to shake Bianca's. Bianca blushed and took his and gave it a gentle shake. Almost like she was afraid that he'd disappear.

"I… You're… Danny Phantom… I mean," Bianca babbled, desperately trying to string together a decent sentence. Danny raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"I'm guessing you're a fan, right?" Danny realised. Bianca blushed even further and nodded shyly. Danny laughed softly.

"It's nice to meet you Bianca," Danny added. Bianca smiled and finally let Danny's hand go. She heaved her hold-all higher on her shoulder and rubbed where the strap had been before.

"Here, I'll take that. Jazz, give me yours too," Danny offered and gently pulled away from Sam. Jazz dropped her bag off her shoulder and smiled gratefully at Danny.

"Thanks, chasing you across town isn't nearly as easy as it used to be," Jazz remarked as Danny pulled the shoulder strap over his head.

"That's because you have a car usually," Danny reminded her and held out his hand to Bianca to take her bag.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks," Bianca muttered nervously.

"Bianca, you're a guest in my home, in my town even. You have a heavy bag and I'm pretty strong. Besides if I'd been on time, we'd already be at home. Let me carry it," Danny argued gently. Bianca glanced at Jazz who shrugged encouragingly. Bianca nodded and handed Danny her bag.

Danny stumbled when he took her bag.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll carry it!" Bianca yelped. Danny laughed and shrugged it on to his shoulder. Tucker laughed and Jazz and Sam smiled good-naturedly, refraining from outright laughter to spare Bianca's feelings.

"I'm messing with you Bianca. It's not a problem," Danny chuckled and gave Sam a peck on the cheek.

"Movie later?" he asked.

"If you can get away," Sam agreed. Danny grinned and turned to Jazz and Bianca.

"Come on, I'll give you two a lift home," Danny decided and placed an arm around both the college girls' waists. Bianca shivered involuntarily from the touch as Danny floated into the air with both girls. He nodded in farewell to Sam and Tucker before he flew off towards Fenton Works. Sam and Tucker got on their scooters and drove off in the opposite direction.

 **So, I wanted to show how Danny and Sam interact with each other now that they've been boyfriend/girlfriend for a year now. However I'm not the best at writing romance so let me know how it's coming across.**

 **As for the poll options. Hopefully the next one will have a few more options, or at least one more. I'm not writing right now due to exams and life but next week I'm free to write.**

 **And so until the next chapter…**


	3. Chapter 3

Danny landed outside Fenton Works within minutes. He set Jazz and Bianca down and then reverted to his human form. His eyes changed from green to blue, his hair turned from white to black and his black and white jumpsuit changed to jeans and a white and red shirt. Bianca gaped at him before he walked off, not noticing the college girl's surprise. He phased through the front door and opened it for Jazz and Bianca. Jazz rolled her eyes.

"Forget your keys again or just showing off?" Jazz asked as the two girls walked into the house. Danny smirked.

"Who needs keys?" Danny joked. He pushed the door shut and disappeared off upstairs to put the two bags into Jazz's room.

Jazz showed Bianca around the living room and kitchen and brought her friend downstairs to the lab. Bianca stared at the Ghost portal in awe.

"So, the Ghost Zone is on the other side of that thing?" Bianca breathed.

"Sure is," Danny answered from behind her. Bianca jumped and glared at Danny as he walked past her and tapped a few buttons on the console. He then brought out a thermos from his deep jeans pocket and fixed it to a hole on the console. He tapped a button and the portal opened briefly as a blue blur disappeared into the swirling green before the thick metal doors slammed shut again.

"Do you have to do that right now?" Jazz asked. Danny unclipped the thermos and turned to Jazz.

"Thought I should do it while I remembered. Otherwise I might leave him in there for a week. I'm angry at him but I'm not cruel. It's horrible in there," Danny replied with a shudder. Jazz quickly hid her guilt at the memory of sucking Danny into a thermos… repeatedly.

"Where's mom and dad? I thought they'd be here," Jazz inquired. Danny shrugged.

"My guess, looking for the Box Ghost. I'll try and get them on the assault vehicle radio. Suppose I should let them know I caught him either way," Danny answered causally. Jazz nodded and then pulled Bianca out of the lab to finish her tour.

"Have you ever been to the Ghost Zone?" Bianca asked curiously. Jazz glanced at Bianca and nodded.

"Once. Danny doesn't go in there much and I'd never go in there without him. It was before everyone knew his secret. We tried to get the ghosts to help us before telling the world Danny's plan against the disasteroid," Jazz answered. Bianca whistled softly.

"What's it like?" Bianca inquired. Jazz shrugged.

"This is my room. Bathroom is there and you're room is this way," Jazz explained as she pointed out doors on the upstairs landing.

"I guess, to answer your question. It's different. Everything is floating in a green, gaseous expanse. There's no floor or sky necessarily. There are islands of rock and purple doors floating throughout the zone. But honestly, I didn't get a great look. The first Spectre Speeder was attacked almost instantly by a lot of ghosts. Luckily there was an escape pod. Danny told me, Sam and Tucker to get in it and he was the only one to get hit when the ghosts destroyed the Speeder. He was alright because of Phantom but it was scary to say the least," Jazz admitted. Bianca nodded slowly.

"This is the Special ops centre. Your room is through here. Bathroom is in there," Jazz explained as she pointed to a bathroom and led Bianca through a door that remained always attached to the house. It was part of the reason Jazz's father, Jack Fenton, had gotten Maddie, Jazz's mother, to agree to building the ops centre. Jack had sold it as originally being an attic conversion and then added ghost weapons and a blimp as he went.

Once Bianca had moved her bag to the guest bedroom, both college girls sat in the living room and switched on the TV. Danny walked in on his phone.

"Yeah, I got him… Sorry dad, I already sent him back into the Ghost Zone… alright, next ghost I promise… yeah, by the way Jazz is home… Bianca… yeah… Look I'm going out for a couple of hours and I'll patrol the town too, I'll see you later right?... I'll bring a thermos… I know… alright, bye," Danny said into his phone and rolled his eyes as he dropped the phone into his pocket. Danny saw the college girls looking at him and he smiled.

"Dad's on his way home," Danny commented.

"What was the thing about the ghost?" Jazz asked curiously. Danny sat down on the couch beside her.

"Oh, dad wants a target to practice on. You know since he doesn't have Phantom anymore. At least not since our last weapon test went wrong. He keeps begging me to hand a ghost over to him," Danny explained.

"Isn't that cruel?" Bianca retorted with a scowl. Danny shrugged.

"Probably, which is why I've repeatedly "forgotten" to keep the ghosts I catch. Another reason why I try to keep up to date on my thermos," Danny answered casually.

"Where are you going?" Jazz inquired. Danny grinned.

"Sam's. She got a new sound system and her parents are away for the weekend. So I can go without being scowled at. I'll check for ghosts in town afterwards," Danny replied. Jazz raised an eyebrow.

"Don't leave it too late. You have a busy day tomorrow," Jazz reminded him. Danny sighed in annoyance.

"I know, why does everyone keep reminding me?" Danny huffed. Jazz smirked.

"Maybe because you can be a bit forgetful little brother," Jazz offered with a giggle. Danny scowled at her before getting up and walking to the front door.

"Don't forget your thermos!" Jazz called. Danny groaned and pulled a thermos out his pocket and waved it at her before shutting the door behind him.

"What's going on tomorrow?" Bianca asked once Danny was gone. Jazz smiled.

"There's a parade in town to commemorate the disasteroid and Danny saving the planet a year ago tomorrow. Danny Phantom has been asked to participate. Danny's been dreading it for almost a month now," Jazz explained.

"Dreading it?" Bianca repeated confused. Jazz nodded.

"He doesn't like the attention. You know he wasn't even at the unveiling of the statue of himself outside the town hall last year," Jazz replied knowingly. Bianca shook her head in wonderment before both girls returned to the TV programme.

 **That would be our cue for the actual storyline to start. Things will get a lot more interesting during the next chapter.**

 **And so, until the next chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

It was a beautiful afternoon. Jazz and Bianca met up with Sam and Tucker, abandoning Maddie and Jack with the ghost assault vehicle. Maddie had driven. Danny had left early in order to be ready for the parade.

"Hey Jazz, Bianca," Sam called out and waved to them.

"Hey Sam, Tucker," Jazz returned and they managed to push their way through the crowds to meet up with each other.

"Big turnout huh?" Tucker commented. Jazz nodded while Bianca looked around at the sights.

"I guess people came especially for this. After all Danny doesn't do many public appearances nowadays," Jazz guessed. Sam and Tucker nodded and turned to the bustling crowds scrambling to get good positions.

"Any idea what Danny is going to do?" Jazz asked after the four of them had found a slightly less pushy stretch of road.

"He said that the committee want him to open the parade with a show of his powers or something. He wouldn't say what he was going to do though," Sam answered with a slight shrug.

"What are his powers?" Bianca inquired curiously. Sam smiled.

"Guess you'll have to wait and see. I don't want to give anything away by accident," Sam replied.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls of all ages! We'll be starting in a few minutes, so could you please clear the street?" A male voice shouted through a mega phone. The foursome watched as a few teens ran across the road to meet up with friends and a few parents grabbed their children out of the streets and waited for the celebration to begin.

Suddenly there was screams and shouts of joy as a figure appeared above the street. It was floating there calmly in a standing position. Sam smiled at the figure.

"Well, there he is," she muttered softly and absentmindedly caressed her DP jacket.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! Thank you for your patience! We will now begin the first annual celebration of the disasteroid, Danny take it away!" the male voice announced excitedly. It was clear that no one knew what Danny had in mind and everyone was excited.

People shouted encouragement to Danny as suddenly there were four Danny Phantoms floating above the crowd. Two Dannys made large balls of ice and then threw them up high. The other two Dannys fired a ghost ray at each ball of ice and caused a brief snowfall over the crowd, much to the delight of all his fans and young children. Then the four Dannys dove right down as fast as they could in a square formation and pulled up at the last second fully in sync. They turned to the crowds and waved before charging their hands with ghost energy and blasting the thin layer of snow on the road away for the parade to come. He merged back into one Danny and stretched his body into impossible movements as he flew around above the crowds before diving down through the pavement and disappearing.

There was a collective groan of disappointment throughout the younger spectators before the parade began. Sam suddenly squealed in surprise and Danny appeared hugging her and laughing softly back in his human form.

"Like the show?" he asked after Sam playfully whacked him on the shoulder. Tucker, Jazz and Bianca laughed and complimented him.

"What gave you the idea to contort your body like that?" Jazz inquired once her laughter abated. Danny shrugged and took Sam's hand gently.

"Freakshow to be honest. When he tried to kill you guys in an entertaining way and I upstaged him, I did that. The crowd loved it then, so I figured they'd love it now. What about the snow? It wasn't too much was it?" Danny answered. Sam leant into her boyfriend and laid her head on his shoulder.

"No, everyone loved it Danny. Stop worrying," Sam giggled. Danny grinned down at her before he gasped and a puff of blue mist appeared from his mouth.

"Oh no," he groaned. Suddenly a green disk of swirling energy appeared above the parade.

 **And so the chaos starts…**

 **Not much else to say except…**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

The natural portal wasn't noticed at first. The crowds were too busy cheering people in the parade or catching candy thrown to the children. Danny stepped away from Sam and jumped into the air and changed into his ghost form with a flash of light. His blue eyes changed to a piercing unnatural green, his hair turned to a brilliant white, his jeans and shirt changed to his black and white jumpsuit and his body glowed softly, not that it was noticeable in the bright sunlight. He dashed up through the air to the portal and Sam and Tucker rushed off to warn the parade committee and Jazz, pulling Bianca with her, ran off to find her parents and warn them. They all acted without a word to each other, moving with practiced confidence.

However when a few excited shouts were heard throughout the gathered crowds, the parade was forgotten and people turned to Danny. Not realising the danger they could all be in. Danny was halfway to the portal before it glowed slightly brighter and a ghost emerged. It was only a meter tall with green skin and four arms and pointed teeth. It had large bat wings and wore a black dress of some kind. It had long flowing black hair and it's seven eyes glowed red. It shrieked loudly before turning to the scene below it. It saw Danny flying as quickly as possible towards it and bared its menacing teeth at him.

It lunged. Danny struggled to come to a stop before darting to the side. The monster sniggered and changed direction before tackling Danny despite his attempts to dodge. He yelled in surprise as the monstrous ghost dove at the ground, holding him in front of it like a shield, head first. Danny glanced down below him and decided to take a risk. It would either make this impact extra painful or protect him and hopefully buy him a little time. His green eyes glowed an electric blue and he was quickly encased in ice as was the ghost attacking him. Both ghosts smashed into the road and created a deep crater.

The parade came to a stop and the spectators gasped in horror. Slowly Danny phased up through the tarmac and stumbled to keep his balance as he held his head. His eyes, now green again, looked very unfocused.

"Danny?!" Sam exclaimed and ran over to him. She caught him as he threatened to fall over.

"Danny? Are you alright? What's wrong?" Sam asked concerned. Danny blinked a few times before shaking his head.

"Ye… yeah, I'm fine. Thanks Sam. Can you try to get all these people away from here?" Danny replied slowly, still clearly dazed but at least he was more with it. Sam nodded sternly to her boyfriend.

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Sam retorted worriedly. Then a soft rumbling sound came from the crater and the monstrous ghost reappeared and hissed angrily at Danny.

"Go!" Danny ordered fearfully and pushed Sam away from him and lunged at the ghost, narrowly avoiding three green ghost rays from the monster.

Danny barrelled into the ghost and flew it away from the parade and out towards the park. He needed more room to fight this kind of ghost. He just hoped that another ghost wouldn't come out of the portal. However the monster managed to kick Danny in the stomach and made him drop it. The ghost caught itself and leered at Danny. He panted as he got his breath back and scowled at the ghost. Danny fired a ghost ray at the ghost which it returned causing an explosion to occur between them. Danny was blown backwards a few feet before Danny corrected himself. He glared at the ghost.

"You know, you've ruined everyone's day," Danny commented angrily. The ghost snarled at him, in an almost laugh. It charged at him again. Danny scowled. This was getting old. He needed a better tactic than charging and dodging. He dropped out of the sky like a stone and the ghost sailed above him harmlessly and slammed into a brick building. Danny grinned as the ghost peeled itself off the wall. The ghost couldn't change direction quickly after all when it charged.

"Come on then, Toro! Toro!" Danny taunted and, without a cape or cloth, waved his hands above his head. The ghost snarled angrily at him and charged again. Danny shot straight up and dodged the ghost. It slammed into the building on the other side of the street. Danny sniggered and floated back down to the ghost's level.

"Is that all you've got?" Danny asked cockily. The ghost pulled itself away from the building and bared its teeth at Danny. It turned and charged again. Danny raised an eyebrow and dropped again. Only this time the ghost dropped as well. Danny's eyes widened in surprise and he formed a green shield of ghost energy around himself.

They crashed into the street below them, setting off car alarms all around. Danny scowled and fired a ghost ray and hit the ghost in the face. It snarled at him angrily. Danny smirked tauntingly and charged his fist again and shot at the ghost. It ducked and charged again. Danny turned intangible and phased down through the tarmac and a moment later punched the confused ghost from below. It was thrown into the air where it shook its head and with a toothy grin raced back to the parade. Danny growled in annoyance and chased after the ghost. He really didn't want a repeat of the Box Ghost.

 **I want to clarify something before I continue. Tucker is not mayor anymore in this fanfic. I wrote a fanfic before set after Phantom Planet and while it isn't canon for this, I do feel that similar things would have happened and Tucker would have stepped down shortly after becoming mayor due to excessive work load and wanting to spend time with his friends. So Tucker isn't mayor. It hasn't affected the fanfic yet but it'll make sense why I'm clarifying this in the next chapter.**

 **So, until the next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

Tucker had managed to get the mega phone away from the parade committee leader and was yelling through it for everyone to evacuate the area. However no one was listening to him, far too intent on watching Jack and Maddie Fenton trying to set up a portable ghost shield that they were designing to block off natural portals, but it was still a work in progress. However when Jack hit the activation button, the whole thing short-circuited. Jazz was busy explaining to Bianca how to use a wrist ray in case another ghost came through the portal while Danny was busy. Sam had tried to keep the crowd calm and encouraged them to leave. However no one was willing to leave until the rest did, in case they missed something.

Suddenly a little boy squealed in delight and pointed to the sky as two figures came into view. Danny fired multiple ghost rays at the fleeing ghost, desperately trying to hit it. However the ghost was faster and it was clear that Danny was having a hard time keeping up. The ghost swivelled around and fired four ghost rays at Danny, catching him by surprise. He plummeted to the ground and managed to catch himself before he fell on a group of gawking people below. He scanned the street quickly and frowned. He turned back to the ghost, now floating beside the ghost portal. It curtseyed at him and grinned broadly.

"You are worthy. My queen will be in contact," It hissed in a vaguely feminine voice. Then the ghost slithered through the portal which closed immediately afterwards.

Danny blinked in surprise before turning to see the parade committee and Tucker staring at him from a small stage. Danny flew over and Tucker handed the mega phone to Danny. He took a calming breath before switching it on.

"Sorry for that everyone. The ghost is gone now. In future, when you're told to leave, go because you could have been hurt or distracted me during the fight. So er… as you were," Danny announced through the mega phone and handed it to the committee head and jumped off the stage with Tucker. They pushed their way through the crowds and joined Sam, Jazz, Bianca and Jack and Maddie. Danny changed back to his human form and hugged Sam.

"Sorry for pushing you," he apologised. Sam smirked and shook her head.

"It's fine Danny, you were stressed and you did save me from that ghost," Sam reassured him. She gently pulled away from him and wrapped an arm around his waist before turning to the others.

"What did that ghost say?" Jazz asked once Sam and Danny had resolved his guilt.

"Something about me being worthy and their queen will be in contact," Danny recalled with a frown.

"Worthy?" Tucker repeated and Danny nodded solemnly.

"I don't want to even think of what you're "worthy" for," Sam muttered with a shiver. Danny nodded thoughtfully.

"Maybe I should go into the Ghost Zone and ask around," Danny suggested.

"No! That's too dangerous Danny. I won't allow it," Maddie decided firmly and glared at her son, daring him to contradict her. Danny raised an eyebrow, fully prepared to have the argument that he knew his way around the Ghost Zone.

"You don't need to go asking around. That ghost said their queen will be in contact. Meaning they'll come to us," Bianca ventured. Danny smiled grimly at Bianca.

"I know, that's what I'm worried about. If this queen is coming here, I'd like to know if they're a friend or not. And judging by my past experiences and that ghost just now, it probably won't be," Danny explained calmly.

 **So, I want to say this, Maddie and Danny have an ongoing argument about him going into the Ghost Zone. I felt that after his parents learned that he was half ghost, they'd get involved and try to protect him. I explain the argument a little more in the next couple of chapters but it's kind of a sub-plot thing.**

 **Anyway, like I said, things are going to get interesting.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning Bianca strolled into the kitchen, still half asleep, yawning to herself, dressed in her pyjamas. She stretched and padded blindly over to the fridge.

"Morning, sleep well?" Danny asked softly, looking up from a laptop he was reading from. Bianca jumped, and spun around to see Danny smirking at her.

"Been visible the whole time," he remarked. Bianca blushed.

"Sorry Danny. Morning, yeah I slept alright. You? Do you know where the coffee is?" Bianca replied nervously.

Danny nodded and got up and pulled a jar of instant coffee granules out of a cupboard and put a cup next to the kettle for Bianca. He then retook his seat and clicked on the touch pad and shrugged to her.

"Not really. Maybe got a couple of hours. Decided to do something constructive instead," Danny answered as he scanned the laptop screen. Bianca turned on the kettle and got the milk.

"Better check that before you use it," Danny warned without looking up. Bianca frowned in confusion before tentatively sniffing it. Danny noticed her and smiled.

"Oh, it's in date. Just make sure it isn't glowing before you drink it. Dad likes to keep ectoplasmic samples in the fridge sometimes," Danny explained. Bianca scowled and examined the milk carefully. She deemed it safe and poured it in the cup along with hot water and a spoonful of instant coffee and sat down at the kitchen table.

She blew on her drink softly before taking a sip and watched Danny for a few minutes.

"What are you doing?" she ventured. Danny glanced up at her and smiled grimly.

"Going through my ghost files. Looking for any ghost that could be considered a queen. So far I've only seen Dora but we're on good terms. Besides sending aggressive messengers isn't like her," Danny answered before clicking on another file and scanning through it.

"You're on good terms with a ghost?" Bianca repeated incredulously. Danny smiled and nodded.

"I have many ghost friends Bianca. Not all ghosts are evil or want to pick a fight. But my parents, in particular my mom, haven't really met them. Mom thinks every ghost hates me and has kinda banned me from going into the Ghost Zone alone. It's funny really when you think about it," Danny replied as he clicked on another file.

"How many files have you got?" Bianca inquired cautiously. Danny glanced at Bianca from above the laptop and laughed softly.

"Not enough apparently. I've looked through these twice now and nothing. I only have files on ghosts I've met and I haven't been everywhere in the Ghost Zone yet. But I know what you're thinking. I haven't been doing this all night. I had some homework to do too," Danny explained as he shut the laptop and rubbed his face to wake himself up a bit.

"Maybe you should get some sleep. I mean, you look really tired," Bianca suggested, feeling she should say something in Jazz's stead. Danny shook his head.

"Nah, I won't get any. I'm a really light sleeper and mom and dad will be up in a little while. Dad tends to be very loud in the mornings. Besides I've survived on very little sleep before, especially in the beginning. I'll be fine, but thanks Bianca," Danny retorted with a small smile.

They lapsed into a natural silence while Danny leant back in his chair and scowled in thought and Bianca sipped her coffee. A soft thud broke the silence and Danny glanced up at the ceiling and waited a moment and footsteps came from above and down the stairs.

"Morning mom," Danny called as Maddie walked into the kitchen, fully dressed and ready for the day. Maddie smiled at her son and made herself a cup of coffee and poured out a bowl of cereal. She then frowned and turned to him.

"What are you doing up this early?" she asked.

"Been doing homework and going through my ghost files trying to figure out who I should expect to turn up," Danny answered as he got up and stretched. Maddie raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"If I see that the portal was open last night, you're in trouble young man," Maddie commented as she sipped her coffee. Danny shrugged.

"I didn't use it. I was going to wait until you guys got up, just in case something came through," Danny replied. Maddie slammed her cup on the counter.

"The Ghost Zone is dangerous! You can't go in there alone," Maddie exclaimed angrily.

Danny scowled at his mother.

"Mom, I've told you before, I've been in there tons of times. I have a pretty good idea of where everything is. I am half-ghost. Technically I half belong there. It's not nearly as dangerous as you think," Danny argued. Maddie folded her arms.

"I disagree Danny. I've seen the amount of enemies you have. You put them all in the Ghost Zone. You go in there and you're looking for trouble," Maddie reminded him.

"Oh, not this argument again!" Jazz complained as she padded into the kitchen. She smiled to Bianca and took out the milk from the fridge and eyed it before pulling out a cup and boiling the still slightly steaming kettle.

"Mom, trust me, Danny can handle himself in the Ghost Zone," Jazz reassured her mother as the kettle clicked and Jazz made herself a cup of coffee.

"The only time you were in there, the ghosts destroyed the Spectre Speeder mark one. How is that safe?" Maddie recalled heatedly. Jazz shrugged.

"Circumstances were strained," Jazz commented and sat down beside Bianca.

"Mom, you can't stop me. I'm going in at some point today. I have to check what kind of ghost is coming here. It might be nothing and it'll be something like Dora or Youngblood but if it's something like Nocturne or Undergrowth… I'd like to have an idea of what I'm dealing with," Danny announced sternly. Maddie scowled.

"Your father and I can always remove your ability to open the portal Danny," Maddie threatened. Danny raised an eyebrow.

"No you can't. All I have to do is overshadow you and I'll be able to open it. Face it mom, you can't stop me," Danny informed her. Maddie scowled angrily and looked like she was going to argue again but instead pursed her lips and drank her coffee.

"That's mom three and Danny five," Jazz whispered to Bianca with a smirk.

"How did your mom win three?" Bianca asked. Jazz smirked.

"You don't want to know," Jazz muttered.

 **So, like I said, Danny and Maddie have this argument a lot. Let me know what you think of the story so far. I love hearing what you guys think.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8

Two hours after Danny and Maddie's argument, everyone was in the lab. Danny, already in his ghost form, was having another argument with his mother about letting someone go with him. Maddie wanted Danny to bring one of his parents at least whereas Danny wanted to go alone and ask around without anyone else with him. Sam and Tucker had come over and were watching the argument with barely contained smirks of amusement with Jazz. Bianca was completely bewildered by how protective Maddie was. Jack meanwhile was actually working. He was tapping commands into the Ghost portal console and setting up the Ghost shield. It was standard practice now that whenever they had to open the portal for a long time, the shield was activated in case a ghost tried to get out.

"Mom! I'm faster on my own," Danny exclaimed for the third time that morning.

"But we don't know what's going on if we're not with you. At least take this camera," Maddie argued and tried to hand Danny a web cam. Danny folded his arms and shook his head.

"I've told you. Walker thinks those things are illegal. If I take that in there I really am asking for trouble," Danny reminded her sternly.

"What about the Speeder? I could drive the Speeder," Maddie offered. Danny rolled his eyes.

"Mom, the Speeder is big and clunky. Besides you don't even know your way around in there. If we get separated I'd have to try and find you. Trust me mom, I'll be fine," Danny concluded and walked away from his mother and tapped his father on the shoulder lightly.

"How's it looking?" Danny asked, effectively closing the argument.

"So, who won that?" Tucker asked.

"Danny," Jazz answered.

"Are you sure? Looks to me that the argument wasn't won by either of them. Danny walked away before it was clear," Sam inquired. Jazz shrugged.

"Alright, three to mom, five to Danny and six unresolved," Jazz decided. Bianca scowled.

"Why do they argue about that so much?" Bianca questioned.

"Mom thinks the Ghost Zone is too dangerous. I think it's because she's never been in there," Jazz began.

"Whereas Danny is experienced. He knows it is dangerous in there if you don't know your way but he's had plenty of practice," Sam added.

"Your mom has never been in the Ghost Zone?" Bianca repeated incredulously.

"Neither has dad. The situation has never come up. I think Danny wants to go alone this time though because he really doesn't know what's waiting for him. If he knew, he'd probably let mom go but since he doesn't, he doesn't want to take the risk. Besides mom and dad can be a bit trigger happy in ghost fights. That's why Danny hasn't introduced them to any of the ghosts he's friends with yet," Jazz explained.

"Alright, Ghost shield is up! You ready Danny?" Jack announced loudly. Danny nodded and stepped in front of the portal.

"I'll be as fast as I can. Probably will take me a couple of hours though," Danny replied. Jack tapped one last button and the portal doors slid open. Danny floated off the ground and disappeared into the swirling green portal.

"Now we wait and guard the portal," Sam muttered as she pocketed a nearby Fenton lipstick in her jacket and leant against a desk beside a few glowing beakers of green sludge and folded her arms, watching the portal already bored.

Danny flew quickly through the green gaseous atmosphere and spotted Ember strumming on her guitar casually on a small rock island floating in the seemingly endless expanse of green.

"Hey, Ember! Mind having a chat?" Danny called to her cautiously. Since the whole disasateroid thing, Ember would be civil to him when they were both in the Ghost Zone as long as she was in a good mood. However outside the zone, Ember wouldn't hesitate a second before starting a fight. She looked up and shrugged.

"Sure, nothing better to do right now," Ember replied gloomily. Danny raised an eyebrow and landed beside her. She shuffled over to allow him to sit next to her.

"Something wrong?" Danny asked uncertainly as he sat beside the ghost. Ember glanced at him.

"Yeah, Skulker hasn't been around for a week now. He's off hunting something as usual and he hasn't even sent word back to me about how it's going. We had an argument before he left and I think he's still mad at me," Ember explained softly, strumming a little tune on her guitar again. Danny bit his lip.

"Hey, Ember, why don't you go looking for him? You could make things up to him and see how he is. And if he's still acting like a jerk, you can use your guitar to scare away whatever he's hunting," Danny suggested. Ember glanced at Danny and grinned mischievously.

"That's not half bad advice. Thanks Phantom. So, you wanted to talk to me," Ember reminded him.

Danny nodded.

"Yesterday, a portal opened in Amity Park and a ghost came out. I'm guessing it was female. Anyway she attacked me and after I fought her for a bit, she flew back to the portal and said, "You're worthy. My queen will be in contact". Any idea what queen that ghost was referring to?" Danny explained. Ember scowled in thought and shrugged.

"There are a few queens in the Ghost Zone. There's Dora… er there's the queen of the animal ghosts. Hmm, I think there's a queen for a bunch of female ghosts on the other side of the zone. But with what you've said, I can't tell. Sorry Phantom," Ember replied. Danny nodded sadly.

"Can you think of anyone that would know? And be willing to help me?" Danny inquired. Ember shrugged. Danny frowned in disappointment.

"Oh, well. Thanks for the help Ember. Good luck with Skulker," Danny concluded and got to his feet. Ember gave him a small smile.

"Sorry I couldn't help more. But er… Skulker was thinking about paying you a little visit if you catch my drift," Ember ventured. Danny grinned.

"Thanks Ember. Let me guess, don't tell Skulker you told me right?" Danny retorted. Ember winked at him.

"At least we're even now," Ember commented before she stood up and put her guitar on her back.

"Good luck Dipstick!" she called to him as she flew away.

 **So, I wanted to show how I think things would have changed for Danny in the Ghost Zone. After all, Danny did save the Ghost Zone and I'd think that his enemies might be grateful to him for that… At least some of the time.**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.**

 **But in other news, I have finished my exams! That means I can get back to writing and back to maintaining my website. So those spot review pages will be up within a few days. And the next poll should hopefully have another option, maybe even two depending on how I go.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	9. Chapter 9

The portal glowed slightly brighter and everyone in the lab tensed. However they relaxed again when Danny stepped into the lab and changed back to his human form.

"Well?" Maddie asked, slightly annoyed that Danny had gone alone. Danny shrugged.

"None of the ghosts I spoke with knew which queen I was talking about. Apparently there are a few. But nothing really happened. Got chased by an ectopus and one of Vlad's vultures tried to pick a fight but nothing major," Danny answered disappointed.

"Who did you talk with? Maybe you missed someone," Sam asked. Danny grinned at her but shook his head.

"I doubt it. I spoke with Frostbite, Pandora and Ember. Dora said she'd ask around for me but she didn't know. I went to Clockwork but he wasn't allowed to tell me because of some law the Observants have. I looked for Wulf but he's probably in the human world somewhere. By the way, there's a little rumour that Skulker might be paying a visit soon," Danny explained.

"Ember right?" Sam smiled. Danny shrugged.

"Not meant to say," Danny replied with a smirk.

"Isn't Ember one of your enemies," Maddie recalled. Danny turned to her and nodded.

"Usually, but recently most ghosts won't attack me in the Ghost Zone. Ever since the whole disasteroid thing, I think they've realised that I don't go into the Ghost Zone without a reason. They might still pick a fight if I catch them at a bad time, but usually they'll hear me out first. I told you mom, I know how to handle myself in the Ghost Zone," Danny retorted.

Maddie raised an eyebrow but didn't respond.

"Better close the portal dad. Don't want to test our luck too much," Danny suggested and Jack gave his son a grin before tapping on the console again. Then Danny's ghost sense went off. His eyes widened.

"Dad! Close it now!" Danny warned and with a flash of light returned to his ghost form and faced the portal, charging his hands with ghost energy. Sam, Tucker and Jazz pulled out their weapons and Maddie rushed over to the console to help Jack. Bianca subtly backed herself behind the others.

The portal glowed slightly brighter and a foot came through. It was a large boot and as the leg above it followed, a deep red gown came into view. An arm followed and with it the rest of the ghost. Danny shifted into a defensive stance and charged his fists brighter. The ghost regarded him. It was a tall, thin woman. It had pale skin, even for a ghost. It had long flowing green hair and red eyes. She wore a long flowing red, fur lined cape and a medieval style dress with green and gold inlay and black strings across her bodice. A simple golden crown perched on her head.

Jack and Maddie stopped typing into the console, there was no point now that the ghost had come through. Sam, Tucker and Jazz primed their weapons but didn't move. Danny would make the call whether to shoot or not. No one moved. Danny's fists pulsed with green energy and the ghost smiled at him. She then inclined her head slightly to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Danny Phantom," she announced in a booming voice. Danny scowled in confusion.

"What's your business here?" he asked tentatively. The ghost looked at him and smiled.

"I'm only here to talk. I mean you and this world no harm," the ghost replied. Danny stood up straight and allowed his green glow to fade.

"This house is blocked off from the rest of the world by a Ghost shield. No ghost can breach it. If you turn on me, be warned that we have ecto-weapons at the ready," Danny explained sternly. The ghost inclined her head in understanding.

"I understand, but I assure you, I mean you no harm. I merely want to speak with you and offer you a chance to protect your world better," the ghost replied calmly.

"Who are you?" Danny questioned cautiously. The ghost raised an eyebrow.

"I am Queen Mariah Dark, queen of the Ghost Zone. My messenger told me you had been informed that I'd be coming," the ghost answered proudly.

 **Yep, I created this ghost too. I explain a little more about her in the next couple of chapters. So…**

 **Any guesses on what might happen or even what Queen Mariah Dark wants?**

 **Let me know what you guys think.**

 **I have brought my website up to date. So please do check out spot reviews for my some of my favourite reviews from Trip to the Great Ghost Zone and A Ninja's Toolbox. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

Danny blinked in surprise. Queen Mariah Dark. The queen of the Ghost Zone. He shook his head slightly and frowned at her.

"If you're the queen of the Ghost Zone, how come I've never heard of you?" Danny asked slowly. The queen raised an eyebrow.

"You know every ghost in the zone now? Besides you have heard of things I've created," the queen countered. Sam, Tucker and Jazz lowered their weapons, safety still off but no longer pointed at the queen.

"Things you've made?" Danny repeated confused. The queen smirked and nodded.

"I make gifts for ghosts that catch my eye. Who do you think made the Infi-map and Clockwork's staff and time medallions? I gave Skulker his original battle suit, and I must admit he has improved it brilliantly over the years. I gave Ember her guitar and Dora and Aragon their amulets. The Reality Gauntlet, an experiment of mine that unfortunately fell through a portal along with a crystal ball that I believe was recently used by a human called Freakshow. The Spectral barometer the Observants used to control Vortex. Johnny 13's bike and many other items used by numerous ghosts," The queen explained with a hint of pride.

"Then why didn't Ember tell me about you when I asked her about an hour ago?" Danny asked. The ghost laughed softly.

"I rarely deliver my gifts in person and I rarely inform the ghost that I was the one to give it to them. I merely enjoy creating and my creations are better used than sitting in some dark corner of the Ghost Zone gathering dust," the queen answered. Danny frowned as he took in what he'd been told. It would make sense, those items weren't attached to any ghost in particular. He'd driven Johnny 13's bike before, not that his mother knew that. He'd used Ember's guitar as a sword against Youngblood. The Infi-map could be used by anyone as could Clockwork's time medallions. Danny had never really thought about how those items had come into being before, but it did make sense that there was a powerful ghost hiding somewhere in the Ghost Zone making spectral items now that he thought about it.

"I always thought that those items were formed by the ghosts that used them. I mean Ember uses her guitar to channel her music ghost powers and Johnny uses his bike to get everywhere," Danny commented. The queen nodded slowly.

"In a way they did. My items don't create power Danny, I can call you Danny right?" the queen began. Danny's eyes widened in surprise at the queen's question and nodded to her uncertainly. He still wasn't entirely sure if he should trust this ghost but she didn't seem to be a threat. At least not for the time being.

"Thank you. As I was saying, my items don't create power, they merely enable ghosts to channel their powers better and extend their power further. For example, Clockwork's staff enables Clockwork to manipulate all of time anywhere he is. Without it, he can freeze time and restart it. He may be able to rewind events to a certain degree, but with his staff, his natural powers are amplified and focused. Similar to Ember's, she can use her voice instead of her guitar to channel her powers but her voice would eventually wear out. Her guitar won't. So you see, my items help ghosts rather than create them," the queen explained. Danny nodded slowly.

"So another ghost could take one of those items and use it for themselves in theory. So if I was holding Clockwork's staff, I could control time," Danny replied curiously. The queen raised an eyebrow and shook her head.

"Not exactly. You'd have an amount of control but not nearly as much as Clockwork," the queen answered. Danny nodded, deep in thought.

"Er, sorry, but did you say you were called Mariah _Dark_? Like Pariah Dark?" Tucker interjected nervously. Danny's eyes widened in recollection. The queen scowled.

"I did, but let me assure you, I am nothing like my brother. I may have given him the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire, but I didn't approve of his methods of gaining control. I made the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep and rallied the ancient ghosts to lock him inside it," the queen affirmed in a sour tone.

"Your brother?" Danny repeated and gave Tucker a slight nod in gratitude for recalling the name. Tucker smiled weakly in recognition.

"Yes, my older brother. I gained my title after he was locked away. However I never truly wanted it. I merely wanted to create. However there was no clear "winner" in our battle against my brother and so I was appointed his successor. The other ghosts have faded away now," the queen explained with a touch of sadness.

"Faded away?" Jazz asked cautiously. The queen glanced at her and nodded grimly.

"Ghosts don't die necessarily. But if they lose the will to go on or lose their reasons for existence, they fade away into nothing. It happens to many old ghosts especially ghosts that form to watch over something that dies. It is a slow and pitiful sight," the queen elaborated.

"I'm sorry," Jazz offered. The queen shook her head solemnly.

"It was a long time ago now and one time allies do not make friends. I prefer to keep looking forwards," the queen retorted. The queen turned back to Danny and smiled warmly.

"Which brings me back to the reason why I am here," the queen commented.

 **Yeah, I love leaving things on cliff-hangers. You should probably be prepared for quite a few of these.**

 **But that's a bit about who Mariah Dark is but not what she wants. Any guesses?**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.**

 **And so, until the next chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11

"I am offering you the chance to protect the human world better from invading ghosts," the queen informed the room. Danny frowned.

"Why? I mean, I want to protect the human world but I don't get why you would," Danny asked suspiciously. The queen chuckled.

"Not all ghosts are evil. I thought you understood that," the queen commented lightly. Danny nodded in agreement but waited for a better explanation. The queen nodded seriously, knowing that he wanted a better answer.

"The Ghost Zone and the human world, while connected, are different worlds. Ghosts don't belong in the human world and real world items don't belong in the Ghost Zone. There's a reason my brother didn't drag the entire planet into the Ghost Zone, you know. It would have destroyed both worlds but he also couldn't claim the human world. He had no right to it," the queen began.

"It didn't stop him from sucking our town into the Ghost Zone," Sam interrupted sourly. The queen gave a curt nod in recognition.

"No, because he felt that he had a claim over it since Vlad Plasmius stole the Ring of Rage and hid it among your kind in Amity Park. My brother was wrong and he broke an ancient law but he was, and still technically is, so powerful that he felt that those laws no longer bound him. In a way he was right," the queen replied.

She took a moment to gather her thoughts before continuing.

"That is why Vortex was imprisoned by the Observants. He tried to take over the human world a long time ago. Walker was appointed the Ghost Zone's warden to cope with criminals like Vortex. Admittedly, he has grown a little obsessive in keeping the law to the point of arresting ghosts that shouldn't be arrested. Apologises to you Danny, I'm afraid it was under my recommendations that Walker got his position," the queen resumed. Danny raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"However my point is, ghosts aren't allowed to be in the human world. Humans aren't meant to be in the Ghost Zone but without a proper leader to reinforce these laws, they have been forgotten. And so we come to my offer," the queen explained and she paused.

"I'm offering you the title of Ghost King, Danny. You are the only one with a true claim to the role and the power to back it up. It was you that locked my brother back into his prison. You have a good heart too, I've seen it. You protect your world on an almost daily basis but you have protected the Ghost Zone before as well. When the Guys in White were going to fire a missile into the zone, you stopped it. You saved both worlds from the disasteriod. You have helped ghosts in the past, Wulf, Amorpho, Ember. You would be a good king, Danny. Merciful but just. And with that power, you'd be able to order any ghost to obey you. As part human, you understand the delicate balance between our worlds," the queen announced.

The room was deathly silent. Danny cleared his throat and nervously licked his lips.

"You want… you want me to be the Ghost King," Danny replied softly. The queen nodded.

"I don't know. I mean, I'm just a teenager," Danny began. The queen laughed softly.

"Danny, I've been looking for a king for many years. I watched Vlad Plasmius for a long time but he didn't deserve my little test, a test which you passed yesterday I'll add," the queen informed him.

"I only beat Pariah Dark because of an ecto-suit my parents made," Danny recalled. He didn't want this kind of responsibility. The queen nodded.

"I am aware of that Danny. However, you are stronger now. I've heard stories of how you defeated Undergrowth and Nocturne. I understand that you weren't strong enough alone to defeat my brother, but you did have the courage and drive to stand up against him. That is true strength Danny. Besides, my brother was wearing my gifts at the time and was far stronger than he would ordinarily be," the queen responded firmly.

"Wait, how exactly would Danny become the Ghost King?" Jazz asked. Danny silently thanked his older sister thinking of the technicalities. If they knew how it would happen, then perhaps they could poke holes in that. The queen nodded with a knowing smile.

"Well, in order for it to be official and binding, we would have to be married," the queen admitted. Danny's eyes widened in shock.

"Danny is a minor," Maddie informed the queen quickly. The queen smiled.

"Yes, he is. In the human world. However in the Ghost Zone, there is no age limit. After all, people die at various ages. His age wouldn't be an issue," the queen assured them.

"What if his parents don't give consent?" Jack offered. The queen grinned.

"Ghostly marriage doesn't require parental consent Mr. Fenton," the queen answered.

Sam scowled angrily and stomped forward.

"Too bad for you. Danny has a girlfriend," she growled protectively. The queen frowned before folding her arms.

"Is that so? If that's all that's stopping him," the queen commented before pulling out a dagger. She lunged at Sam faster than Sam could blink, let alone react.

 **Like I said, I love cliff-hangers…**

 **So a few questions answered and a little action introduced.**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	12. Chapter 12

Danny saw the warning signs. The queen's expression tensed, her eyes narrowed, her stance shifted slightly. She wasn't relaxed anymore.

"Is that so? If that's all that's stopping him," the queen commented and pulled a dagger from a hidden fold of her dress. Danny knew what she was going to do before she lunged at Sam.

"No!" he screamed angrily and darted in between his girlfriend and the queen. He put a hand on Sam's shoulder and focused on turning her intangible first. Then he allowed the intangibility to flow over him.

But before he could finish, he felt a stab of intense pain right between his shoulder blades. He felt a hot pain spreading from a point between his shoulders through his body and stopping at some point half way through his torso. Everything froze for him as his eyes went wide and his body slowly fell into a numbness that Danny vaguely realised must have been shock. He coughed and felt something spill over his chin.

Sam stared at Danny's face in stunned silence. He was only half intangible. He was in facing her with wide unseeing eyes. He gave a small wet cough and began to wheeze, like he couldn't breathe properly. A trickle of green liquid flowed from his mouth and over his chin. Ectoplasm. He was coughing up ectoplasm. Ghost blood. The tingly feeling and shivers down her shoulder faded slowly. His intangibility was fading. She was becoming solid again as was he.

She tore her gaze away from his rapidly whitening face when she heard the sound of the knife being pulled out of Danny's back. The queen looked stern and annoyed. She turned to the blade and withdrew a handkerchief and wiped the ectoplasm off it with a practiced ease and grace. The moment the dagger was pulled from his back Danny collapsed to his knees and began to choke on his own breath and coughing up more ectoplasm.

Then everyone else snapped out of their horrified trance. Maddie, Jack and Jazz began to run to Danny. Bianca looked like she was going to be sick and Tucker kept back. He wasn't good with wounds. They knew that from experience. The queen snorted in disgust. She grabbed Danny by the arm and yanked him into a standing position. The others stopped in their tracks and stared in disbelief as she pulled Danny backwards to the portal.

"I meant you no harm. You forced my hand. Remember that," the queen reminded them sharply and then both Danny and the queen disappeared through the portal.

Jazz was the first to snap into action. She jumped into the Spectre Speeder in the corner and started to tap buttons and flip switches.

"What are you doing Jazz?" Maddie croaked eventually.

"Going after him. If we hurry, we might be able to catch up to them before she gets away," Jazz replied in a calm voice. Too calm, meaning that Jazz was freaking out still but was putting her fear into something useful. Sam blinked away the image of Danny's unnaturally pale face and unseeing eyes and nodded firmly. Danny needed her. He'd been kidnapped by a ghost and was injured. She couldn't afford to be frozen in horror. She ran to the Speeder and jumped in and checked the weapon storage in the back.

Tucker gulped and grabbed a few weapons and with a quick thought, fetched the first aid kit under the work bench. He joined Sam and Jazz in the Speeder and started doing a quick inventory check with Sam. Going into the Ghost Zone was dangerous, doubly so without Danny.

"You are not going into the Ghost Zone-" Maddie began.

"Mom, I'd love to explain that it's not too dangerous and everything but right now we don't have the time for your ongoing argument with Danny," Jazz interrupted her mother sternly as the engines came online. Maddie blinked in surprise.

"I was going to say, you're not going in there without me," Maddie resumed sternly.

"And me," Jack added with a grim smile.

Jazz glanced up and nodded.

"Better let Valerie know where we are in case something happens," Jazz suggested and Jack nodded before rushed off to make the quick call.

"Bianca, you'd best get in. It's not safe to leave you here alone. Mom, maybe activate the ghost defences in case something comes through and lock the console," Jazz decided, becoming more confident by the minute. Bianca nodded and quickly followed Jazz's suggestion as Maddie turned to the console and started tapping.

Within a few minutes, everyone was in the Spectre Speeder mark two. Jazz hoped that they hadn't wasted the precious moments they had to catch Danny as she pulled the Speeder in front of the portal. With a deep breath and a quick glance at everyone, Jazz drove the Speeder through the swirling green doorway to the Ghost Zone. Jazz just hoped that this trip wouldn't be as disastrous as her previous one had been.

 **And so Maddie and Jack take their first trip into the Ghost Zone. Along with Bianca. For the majority of the story from now on, Bianca isn't going to be mentioned much. So just assume that's she's in the Speeder the whole time even if she's not mentioned. I haven't forgotten her but…**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	13. Chapter 13

Maddie, Jack and Bianca gasped at the sight of the Ghost Zone. Jazz pursed her lips and refrained from commenting on how amazing the Ghost Zone was. Now really wasn't the time. Jazz scanned the green expanse for any sign of Danny or Mariah Dark. But there was nothing. Jazz couldn't help but be annoyed that the Ghost Zone didn't have any ground. They might have been able to follow the trail of ectoplasm but there wasn't a trail to follow. Jazz swallowed down her growing panic. They'd lost him. They'd wasted too much time getting ready before following him into the Ghost Zone. Jazz blinked away the stinging behind her eyes. She wasn't going to break down. Her little brother needed her to keep it together. Sam seemed to be having a similar fight inside as she stepped up to the steering wheel and scanned the green gaseous world outside. Sam scowled angrily.

"Alright, we need to do some asking around. Let's go to Frostbite first," Sam suggested in a hardened voice. She was trying to be brave and show a confident, composed exterior while inside she was a roiling mess of emotions ranging from anger to terror. Jazz nodded slowly before biting her lip. Sam glanced at Jazz's indecision and softened her expression.

"Here, I'll drive," Sam offered and Jazz allowed Sam to take the wheel. Maddie looked like she wanted to protest but managed to hold her tongue. Jazz sat down in the back beside Tucker as Sam zoomed off into the Ghost Zone, with a confidence that could only mean that she knew her way.

It wasn't long before an icy white cave came into view. Sam flew straight into it and with a practiced grace, swerved around massive stalactites and pillars.

"Sam, you could have gone the other way," Tucker called to Sam, breaking the silence that had fallen. Sam grunted something inaudible as she looped around a pillar and dove under a particularly wide stalactite.

"This way is faster," Sam eventually answered as she levelled out and the cave entrance opened out. The Speeder hovered soundlessly over the empty white tundra that seemed to go on for miles.

Sam scanned the blinding white landscape before spotting a small pillar of smoke and sped off in that direction. Within minutes the Speeder hovered over a small village where undead inhabitants of the Far Frozen were milling around tending to a handful of fires. Two fires were being used to cook unidentifiable creatures similar to boars. Sam landed the Speeder and jumped to her feet and with one motion, zipped up her jacket and ran to the door.

"Wait here, we don't have enough jackets for everyone. I'll find Frostbite and explain what happened," Sam decided, noticing Maddie and Jazz getting up. She didn't wait to see if the others were going to follow her suggestion before she opened the door and stepped out into the freezing temperatures and slammed the door firmly shut behind her.

Sam ran through the snow, ignoring the stares from the people of the Far Frozen. She needed to speak with Frostbite. If they were lucky, he might even let them borrow the Infi-map. She stumbled into a large icy arena and saw Frostbite standing in the middle with another snow monster. Sam didn't think that maybe running out into the middle of an arena would be a bad idea. She ignored that little voice in the back of her head, too focused on getting to Frostbite as quickly as possible. She kept running until, on instinct, she dropped to the ground and a flash of blue energy went flying over her head. Sam looked up and saw that a target behind her had been frozen solid.

"Wait! Hold your fire," Frostbite boomed in surprise as he walked over to Sam. She quickly got back to her feet and turned to Frostbite.

"Friend of Danny Phantom? What are you doing here? The Great One was here not an hour ago," Frostbite asked uncertainly. Sam swallowed down the saliva in her mouth built up from the long run and took a deep breath.

"We need your help. Danny was kidnapped by a ghost. The queen of the Ghost Zone. We need to know where her lair is," Sam explained rapidly. Frostbite scowled.

"Kidnapped?" Frostbite repeated and scratched his head in confusion. Sam nodded vigorously.

"Yes, she stabbed him and then took him into the Ghost Zone. Please Frostbite, he needs help. You have to tell us where she might take him or… or lend us the Infi-map," Sam begged.

Frostbite frowned and shook his head.

"I am sorry Friend of Danny Phantom. The map will not help you if the queen doesn't wish to be found. She created it you see. If she doesn't want to be found, the map will honour her wishes. And I'm afraid I don't know the location of her lair. I only know that it is deep within the Ghost Zone," Frostbite answered solemnly. Sam fell into a shocked silence. Frostbite wouldn't… no couldn't, help them. The people of the Far Frozen worshipped Danny. If any ghost would help them it would be Frostbite. If Frostbite couldn't help them… then how could they possibly find Danny in the Ghost Zone?

Sam bit back the tears. She couldn't give in. She had to stay strong and they'd find Danny somehow.

"If I may, did Queen Mariah say why she wanted the Great One?" Frostbite ventured. Sam sniffed and blinked back her feelings. She had to keep the turmoil inside under control.

"She said that she wanted to make him king by marrying him," Sam managed. Frostbite scowled in thought.

"Then don't worry. She will tend to his wound and ensure his health and safety. She is a ghost of her word. If she promises safe passage, she grants it. If she wishes to marry Danny Phantom, she will ensure that she can," Frostbite informed Sam confidently. Sam looked up at him hopefully.

"Why does she want to marry him Frostbite? She made it sound like it was a favour to him but the way she acted when he didn't want it, it was like she wanted him for her own reasons," Sam asked nervously. Frostbite shrugged.

"The queen, much like the map, is mysterious. I cannot pretend to understand her plans. It is possible that she reacted the way she did because she felt that the Great One was being ungrateful. She can have a fiery temper in situations such as that," Frostbite guessed.

"You know her well?" Sam inquired. Frostbite shook his head.

"No. I have only met her a handful of times. In fact, she is the reason I lost my hand. She believed that I was ungrateful for the gift of guarding the Infi-map," Frostbite explained and waved his bony arm encased in ice at Sam. Sam's eyes widened and she instantly thought of Danny. He didn't know about the queen's temper. If he said the wrong thing… Sam didn't want to think about it.

"Thank you Frostbite. If you think of anything, we're in the Spectre Speeder looking for Danny in the Ghost Zone. We'll let you know when we find him," Sam thanked him. Frostbite nodded sadly.

"I only wish I could help more. Good luck Friend of Danny Phantom," Frostbite replied sadly and watched as Sam trudged back through the snow towards the Speeder.

 **So search party deployed. Let me know what you think of the story and Mariah Dark.**

 **Some big news. Ever since I set up my website I have wanted to put up videos, mainly my adverts for upcoming fanfics. Unfortunately with Weebly, that wasn't possible so I set up a facebook page to use instead. But yesterday... I found a way to put up videos! So I have a new page on my website devoted to videos. Check it out. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	14. Chapter 14

Danny opened his eyes slowly. He twitched his fingers involuntarily. He groaned as he lifted his head. He was lying on his front with his head bent painfully to one side. He had a terrible crick in his neck. He tried to push himself up off the sheets but black spots danced across his eyes and a sharp pain erupted through his back. He fell back onto the soft bed. He shut his eyes and let the pain fade before he opened them again. He lifted his head slowly and scanned the room. He wasn't at home. He was in a large room with bare stone walls. There was a large red rug on the flagstone floor. He could hear a fire crackling on his other side but his neck ached too much for him to look that way.

He blinked again and put his hand in front of his face and saw it was bare. He pulled a tuft of hair down to eye level and saw his black hair. He was human. It had become a worrying habit that whenever he woke up somewhere he was unfamiliar with, he had to double check which form he was in. He smiled grimly to himself and shut his eyes again as he tried to remember why his back hurt and how he ended up on this bed.

Then his eyes snapped open as he recalled Mariah Dark. The queen of the Ghost Zone. She had told him that she wanted to make him king by marrying him. He and his friends and family had tried to talk her out of it. Sam… the queen had lunged at her with a knife. He'd gotten in the way. He vaguely remembered being dragged to his feet. He faintly remembered snatches of green and the eerie cool silence he'd associated with the Ghost Zone before he blacked out. The queen must have brought him here and he would've reverted back to his human form when he passed out. He tried to get up again. The pain was unbearable and when he was struck by a wave of nausea, he was forced to stop.

He lay on the bed thinking. He had to get away from Mariah Dark. He had to get back home. He had to get his back treated. But first, he needed to change back to Phantom. Being human in the Ghost Zone always made him feel vulnerable. Despite being able to walk through walls as a human in the Ghost Zone, the idea of being less in touch with his ghost powers didn't sit well when he knew there were enemies lurking nearby. He decided to try and charge his hand with ghost energy first. If Mariah had done something to prevent him changing into Phantom, he wanted to be careful and avoid whatever she had done. It would be better if he only endangered a hand rather than his entire being. He placed his hand back in his eye line and built up energy in his fist.

His hand glowed a reassuring green and nothing bad happened. He allowed himself a small smile. She hadn't done something to stop him from using his powers. He allowed the energy to dissipate and he took a breath and willed himself to change. A near blinding flash of light enveloped him as he suddenly felt a chill and became lighter. He nodded to himself painfully and instinctively massaged his aching neck. He floated straight up and slowly tilted himself into a standing position. There was a dull ache in his back in protest but it was manageable.

He slowly turned in a circle and took in the rest of the room. He had been lying on a large four poster king-sized bed. A massive stone fireplace was set in the wall beside a wooden door. The room was simple enough but still showed the wealth behind it. Danny floated experimentally over the bed. He didn't want to venture too far until he was certain he could do so without his back erupting in agony. He nodded to himself again and winced as his neck ached.

He floated over to the door and put a hand on the handle. He tried to pull on the door but the movement aggravated his back and he had to bite back a moan of pain and blinked away the spots from his eyes. He took a breath before deciding to try and push the door. He pressed his hand down and leaned into the door. However again, his back erupted in pain. He frowned to himself. Alright, the door was a little beyond him right now and he had a feeling that he wouldn't be able to phase through it.

He glanced around the room and hissed in pain when his neck ached again. He spotted a window which showed him a boring view of the empty green gaseous expanse of the Ghost Zone. Unfortunately a part of the Ghost Zone he didn't recognise. He examined the window carefully and found that it didn't open. Angry, he punched the glass and earned himself very sore fingers and knuckles. He bit back a curse as he shook the pain out of his hand and floated back to the bed. He floated back on to it, once again laying on his front. It was the better than laying on his very painful back.

He didn't go back to sleep though. Instead he massaged his cricked neck until he could easily and painlessly turn his head. He then began to think. Mariah Dark wanted to marry him. To help the human world? No that didn't sound right. She could have offered to pass laws in his place if that was what she wanted. No she didn't want to protect the human world. She wanted him for some reason. Telling him that being king would enable him to protect his home was a way to get him to agree. Stabbing him in the back… he guessed it was an accident or another way to get him to come with her.

At least Sam was safe. He hoped that Mariah had left them alone after she kidnapped him. He wondered what his family and friends had done after Mariah had taken him. Danny thought about it for less than a second before a gut wrenching realisation came to him. They would've gone after him. He knew that. That meant that they were all in the Ghost Zone. And he wasn't there to protect them this time. He wasn't there to tell any ghosts to back off or to scout ahead or… Danny shook his head. Sam and Tucker knew their way around the Ghost Zone. They knew which ghosts to watch out for and which ones they could talk to. As long as his parents listened to them, they'd be fine.

He smiled grimly to himself. Back to square one with mom and his argument about being allowed in the Ghost Zone. He laughed softly to himself. He shouldn't be thinking of that. He should be thinking of a way to make sure that the argument meant something. If he kept getting distracted by those kinds of thoughts, he'd never get out of the Ghost Zone. He sighed to himself and shut his eyes as he tried to refocus his thoughts on the problem when he heard the door creak open. He stiffened.

 **Heh heh, cliff-hanger… trust me there's a lot of them.**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter…**


	15. Chapter 15

Danny kept his eyes shut as he listened intently to the soft footfalls on the rug enter the room.

"I know you're awake, unless you've learned how to change while you're asleep," a kindly female voice called to him and he heard a soft thud on the floor beside him. He opened his eyes and glanced at his visitor. It wasn't the queen. This was a dumpy woman with plenty of laughter wrinkles around her eyes and white hair neatly tied back in a bun. She had green skin but she also had green eyes. She wore a long white coat, reminiscent of a doctor's lab coat but in a way hers was more casual.

She smiled warmly at him and pulled out a bunch of white gauze from a large bag on the floor. It had a little red cross on it.

"Are you a doctor?" Danny asked cautiously. The woman raised a surprised eyebrow but nodded.

"Yes, I treat many sick ghosts. I'll admit that I've never treated a halfa before, but when her majesty asked me, I couldn't say no. This is one nasty wound. But now that you're awake and in your ghost form, I can treat you properly," the ghost explained as she leant over his back and started to peel away dressings that Danny hadn't noticed before. He winced as they pulled at his aching wound but she was unbelievably gentle.

"What's your name?" Danny asked once the dressings had been removed. He saw her put the dressings to one side from the corner of his eye.

"I don't recall my actual name. I go by Nurse Green. I wasn't particularly inventive with it I know but I think it works," Nurse Green answered as she examined Danny's back carefully.

"Does this hurt?" she inquired as she touched around the wound. His involuntary flinch answered for him.

"Hmm, let me see," Nurse Green muttered as she rummaged in her bag and withdrew with a faintly glowing flashlight.

"You might feel a slight tingling, but it's alright. I'm going to turn some of your back invisible so I can get a better idea of what I'm dealing with. Since the wound was to your ghost form, I'd hazard a guess that it needs to be treated in the same form," Nurse Green explained softly.

Danny nodded into the sheets, he didn't know if she was right, but he wasn't going to disagree. Suddenly his back felt tingly and he closed his eyes and allowed Nurse Green to fully examine his wound.

"As I thought, the blade penetrated deep and when you returned to a more tangible state, the wound was made worse than a clean cut would have been. You're lucky that the queen stopped before she reached your heart, I don't think a halfa could survive that," Nurse Green informed him and she returned the flashlight to her bag and pulled out a deep purple liquid.

"This might sting," Nurse Green warned.

The tingly feeling returned and Danny recognised it to be her turning his back intangible and suddenly it felt like something was burning him on the inside. He bit back a scream and clenched his teeth and balled his hands into fists but remained as still as possible. He knew that this was going to help him. Then the burning stopped. He faintly heard tape being pulled and felt a new dressing being placed over his wound. He slowly relaxed his muscles. His wound ached but it was bearable.

Nurse Green tapped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Sorry about that, but the wound should heal fully now within a few hours," she assured him. Danny nodded and opened his eyes.

"You took that much better than most ghosts you know. I've had a few that tried to shoot me with an ectoblast. How do you feel now?" Nurse Green informed him with a gentle smile. Danny smirked at her.

"I'd be lying if I said I felt better. It aches but it's fine," Danny replied. Nurse Green nodded.

"That's normal. It might be itchy in the next few hours, but don't touch it. If you do, you might reopen it. It's not an easy place to reach but you'd be surprised what some ghosts can do when they're desperate enough. I've seen animal ghosts manage to reach impossible places," Nurse Green told him sternly but still smiling. Danny couldn't help but like this ghost.

"Do you treat many animal type ghosts?" Danny asked. Talking was a good distraction from his aching, slightly itchy back. Nurse Green nodded.

"I treat all kinds of ghosts. Any ghost I find that's wounded. Might I add that I've seen your handiwork on a few of your enemies? I can appreciate that you never caused anything too serious. Just enough to slow them down," Nurse Green answered. Danny grinned nervously.

"You're not angry that I hurt ghosts?" Danny inquired. Nurse Green shook her head.

"Not at all. Ghosts fight all the time and besides you have a very good reason. You're protecting your town from trouble makers. I can respect that," Nurse Green replied with an encouraging smile.

"I would have treated your wounds also in any of your fights if I'd come across you by the way. In fact I actively looked for you after the whole Pariah Dark thing but you were in the human world and I don't know my way there. Besides, I was needed in the Ghost Zone, there were a lot of injuries after that," Nurse Green informed him. Danny turned to her and saw the sincerity in her face. He smiled at her.

"Thanks, but I was fine. Just tired. The suit took the beating instead of me. I don't usually get hurt like this. I've had a few, but I dealt with it easily enough on my own. But it's nice to know that there are ghosts like you in here," Danny replied. Nurse Green nodded and stood up.

"I'll let you rest. Also, I wouldn't try anything too strenuous until your back has fully healed. I'll be back in a few hours. Get some sleep and I'll try to find you something to eat when you wake up," Nurse Green suggested.

Danny nodded to her, knowing he wouldn't get to sleep but knew she was trying to take care of him.

"I've been told to inform the queen when you're ready to have another audience with her. She wants to speak with you as soon as you are able," Nurse Green informed him. Danny scowled but nodded again. It wasn't Nurse Green's fault that Mariah Dark was in charge but that didn't mean that he liked the situation any better. Nurse Green gave him one last smile before she picked up her bag and left the room, closing the door behind her.

 **And another ghost I created. I always thought it would be interesting to meet a ghost that actually helped other ghosts. I mean, with all the ghost fights out there, ghosts are bound to get hurt. Let me know what you think of Nurse Green…**

 **Also, I have put a poll on my website. Make sure to cast your vote and have your say. Unfortunately due to real life, I haven't been able to write as much as I thought I would and haven't been able to add a new option. But check it out anyway. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16

Somehow, Danny did fall asleep. He woke up in the bedroom, again in human form, and spotted a bowl of soup on a bedside cabinet beside him. He slowly pushed himself up and waited for any pain to flare up. None did. He then decided to test out his back properly. He rolled his shoulders slowly. Once, twice, three times. No pain. Whatever Nurse Green had done had worked wonders. Danny pulled himself into a sitting position and reached for the soup, slowly, still nervous of his newly healed back. He smelled the soup and his stomach rumbled in response. It was still piping hot. Perhaps the smell had woken him, or Nurse Green putting it down. Danny spotted a spoon and tried the soup. It was delicious.

Within minutes, he had finished the bowl and felt a lot more alert. He sat back and started to think. Nurse Green would have to tell Mariah Dark that he was awake and healed. The queen would demand to speak with him. He needed to figure out what he was going to say. He needed to figure out how he was going to handle her. Was he going to be angry? Was he going to be careful? Was he going to play along until he could make a break for it? The problem was, he didn't know this ghost well enough to know the best tactic.

Skulker… easy, throw around some witty banter and ask his questions between ghost rays. The hunter would either answer him or fire missiles at him. Johnny 13…take out the shadow first and usually Johnny would listen to whatever Danny had to say. Spectra… just don't let her talk to you. Her words were poisonous. But Mariah Dark… she had seemed to care for humans and then in the blink of an eye, she changed and tried to kill Sam. Danny couldn't be sure which Mariah was the true queen. Was it the caring and understanding woman, or was it the murderous ghost? Was it both, or perhaps it was neither? Danny couldn't tell.

He wished he could speak with Jazz. The budding psychologist would know, Danny was certain. She had read into Freakshow and advised him on how to defeat the human before. She could read how to deal with Mariah too. But Jazz wasn't with him right now. He needed to figure this out for himself. But before he could think of how he was going to behave towards the queen, the door creaked open.

Nurse Green poked her head inside and saw Danny sitting up, fully awake.

"How do you feel?" she asked as she stepped into the room. Danny smiled grimly.

"Unfortunately, I feel completely better. I suppose you couldn't lie to Mariah and say I'm not ready to talk with her yet," Danny replied. Nurse Green smiled sadly and shook her head.

"Afraid not. Lean forward, I'll check to see if it's healed fully. If it hasn't, I can say that to the queen. But if it is, I'll have to inform her majesty," Nurse Green informed him softly.

Danny nodded in understanding and complied. He felt slight discomfort as the ghost pulled the dressing away from his back but there was no pain. It looked like he was healed after all.

"Why do your dressings stay with me, despite me changing forms? Usually if I have something on in human form, it doesn't stay on in ghost form," Danny asked curiously. Nurse Green chuckled softly.

"My dressings are infused with ghost energy. They are meant to stay in place until they're removed properly. I assume that's the reason," Nurse Green answered and Danny saw the dressings being set aside.

"I'm going to check the internal state of your wound. You might feel some tingling," Nurse Green informed him and his back felt tingly.

She then sat back and his back returned to normal.

"The wound has completely healed. I would advise you to avoid anything too stressful in case the wound relapses but I know that you probably won't listen. Let me check your ghost form before I go though, there might be damage to that still," Nurse Green decided. Danny nodded and in a flash of bright light changed into Danny Phantom for Nurse Green. He felt the tingling again and then heard a sigh. He understood, the wound was fully healed. Nurse Green had to inform Mariah Dark.

Danny couldn't help but feel grateful to the ghost. She had tried to stall his audience with the queen but he wouldn't press her to lie to the queen. Nurse Green was too gentle and clearly needed by numerous ghosts in the Ghost Zone, to tempt fate and defy the queen. If Mariah Dark could do this to him without truly trying, he shuddered to think what she could do to a kindly ghost like Nurse Green.

"Thanks for trying Nurse Green. I know you have to tell her that I'm better," Danny thanked the ghost. He looked at Nurse Green and gave her a small smile. Nurse Green smiled sadly in return.

"I'm sorry Danny. But at least let me warn you. Queen Mariah has a frightful temper, don't provoke her. Don't say anything to make her think that you are ungrateful for anything she provides. And if you attempt to leave… don't try until you're sure you can make it. I mightn't be here next time," Nurse Green whispered fearfully. Danny nodded seriously. He understood that the ghost was being brave to warn him. He doubted that Mariah Dark would like Nurse Green gossiping about her or advising him how to escape.

"I'll keep that in mind. Nurse Green… if you see my friends and family out in the Ghost Zone, let them know I'm alright for me. They'll be in a big vehicle with a flaming "F" on the side. And approach carefully. Make sure they know you're not a threat before getting too close. Take this," Danny requested and quickly sculpted an ice statue of Sam with the jacket he gave her with a large DP image on the back. He infused it with a little ecto-energy and hoped that would prevent it from melting. He handed it to the ghost. Nurse Green tentatively took the ice statue and nodded solemnly.

"I can't guarantee that I'll see them, but I'll keep your request in mind. Anything else?" Nurse Green replied softly. Danny shook his head.

"I could ask you to tell them to go home, but I know they won't listen to that. Just let them know that I'm alright. That'll be enough," Danny retorted quietly. Nurse Green nodded slowly and tucked the statue out of sight and got to her feet.

"I wish I could help more Danny," she whispered as she left the room. Danny smiled grimly at the door. He would have to get used to being a prisoner for the time being. At least he knew how not to act around Mariah Dark now. That was something.

 **I just want to explain that Nurse Green doesn't want to help the queen but is too afraid of her to refuse. So, if she had to pick a side, she'd pick Danny's but she mightn't be brave enough to act against Mariah.**

 **Make sure to check out my website and vote in the poll for the next fanfic I post. There's a link in my bio.**

 **But, with that confirmed, until the next chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17

Danny followed the messenger that had come to get him. Nurse Green hadn't come back. He would've been surprised if she had. The messenger was the same one he had fought over the parade. He didn't know how long he'd been in the Ghost Zone so he didn't know if that was yesterday or a few days ago at this point. He walked down numerous narrow stone corridors lit by fiery torches. They provided no heat and threw flickering shadows against the stone surroundings making the building, Danny guessed it was a castle, feel dangerous. But then again, he knew he was going to meet the ghost that had injured him. That probably didn't help matters and certainly didn't help give him a good impression of the fortress-like place he was in.

The messenger pushed open a large wooden door and stepped aside and allowed Danny to walk in first. Danny scowled at the messenger but complied. He had decided that he wasn't going to mask his feelings. But he'd do as he was asked. He sucked at hiding his feelings at the best of times. It really was a wonder how his parents hadn't noticed his nervousness around them and their ghost weapons before he told them his secret. He strolled into the room and saw Mariah Dark sitting in a massive ornate throne at the end of a long thin red carpet. The throne room was massive and Danny felt suddenly small and insignificant. Even in his ghost form, which usually instilled him with confidence.

Danny swallowed down his uncertainty and walked towards the queen and stopped a few feet in front of her. She waited a moment before frowning in annoyance.

"Bow," she growled. Danny quickly hid his scowl and tilted his head forward a little. Just enough to pass for a bow but not as much that he felt that most ghosts would he was sure. He straightened and saw the queen's smile.

"Have you reconsidered my offer?" she asked brightly. Danny licked his lips and nodded. He had to choose his words carefully if he wanted to avoid making her angry.

"I've thought about it, a lot. But I have questions before I make a decision either way," Danny ventured. The queen scowled.

"It's not that I'm not grateful or honoured by the offer but I'm a little confused about some things," Danny elaborated quickly. The queen nodded slowly, her scowl lessened.

"What questions do you have?" she prompted. Danny gave her a small smile in gratitude, a genuine one. He didn't think she would allow him.

"Why do you want to make me king?" Danny asked. The queen raised an eyebrow.

"I told you, so that you'll be able to protect your world better," the queen answered. Danny shook his head.

"That's what I don't get. Most ghosts couldn't care less about the human world. And yet you claim to place that world over the importance of this one," Danny began but instantly saw that he'd said something wrong. The queen looked livid.

"Claim?!" She hissed furiously. Danny's eyes widened in shock. He needed to choose his words better.

"Bad choice of words. I didn't mean it like that. I'm just curious as to what you get out of my becoming king, besides helping the human world," Danny quickly corrected himself and held his breath as he waited for her reaction.

Her anger appeared to fade slowly and she nodded to him thoughtfully before placing her elbows on her knees and steepled her fingers. She leant forward and regarded him carefully. She smiled softly.

"Because I have been forgotten. I wish to be remembered," she answered eventually. Danny released his breath in relief. She had decided he'd genuinely slipped-up.

"How will making me king make others remember you?" Danny asked slowly.

"Because as a team, ghosts will have to listen. They will have to obey," the queen explained cryptically.

"Couldn't that be achieved by an alliance between us? I'm just trying to understand why it's necessary for me to become king for what you say will happen to happen," Danny replied cautiously. The queen shook her head.

"No. A forgotten queen and a half ghost vigilante. It doesn't command the respect that the title of Ghost King and his queen does. Ghosts need to recall the kingdom of old," Mariah answered stiffly.

Danny frowned in thought.

"I thought you said you disagreed with what Pariah Dark did," Danny recalled. Mariah shook her head and smirked.

"No. I said I disagreed with his methods, not his vision. He sought to rule with an iron fist and no compassion. I can see that you wouldn't. You are innately merciful and caring. Good traits for a king. I have put a lot of thought in this offer. You should be honoured to be given this offer," Mariah replied. Danny licked his lips and smiled at Mariah carefully. Hoping to make her think he was grateful for the offer. He knew it was an honour, he was just suspicious of her motives. Well that and he wasn't ready to get married.

"What was Pariah's vision, if I may?" Danny ventured nervously. Mariah smiled.

"An ordered and civilised world, Danny. Not a place where ghosts fight one another to pass the time. Not a place where ghosts go into the human world and terrorise its inhabitants. Not a place thrown into chaos on a daily basis. Appointing Walker as warden was a… poor attempt on my part to achieve this. However he has forgotten some of the ancient laws, including laws making going into the human world illegal. He is too lenient also. Ghosts are long-lived creatures Danny, a thousand years in a time out isn't a punishment. It's a slap on the wrist. Ghosts require a strong punishment to prevent future law breaking. A thousand years in constant pain is far more memorable than sitting in a corner bored for a thousand years," Mariah explained.

Danny frowned in thought again.

"Surely halfas would become illegal if that were the law. If I were king, how would that work?" Danny asked, hopeful that the queen wouldn't have an answer. The queen inclined her head.

"I understand that issue, but as king you would have the power to rewrite troublesome laws like those. So what do you say Danny? Help me to order the Ghost Zone and together we'll prevent dangerous ghosts like Vortex, Nocturne and Undergrowth from ever attacking the human world and your family ever again," the queen offered with a slight edge to her voice. She wanted an answer. Danny couldn't stall her any longer.

Danny swallowed down his indecision. He couldn't… wouldn't marry Mariah Dark. It wasn't right. But how could he say no without a reason other than "I don't like you"? Mariah raised an eyebrow.

"Well?" she prompted impatiently. Danny licked his lips, desperately trying to think of a way out of this mess. Saying yes was the safest and probably wisest move, but he couldn't say it.

"I see… I had wanted you to come to a decision freely but… you leave me no choice. You'll see one day that I'm making the right choice," Mariah commented and nodded to someone behind Danny. He spun around and saw the messenger hovering there smiling grimly with a crown in her clawed hands. She floated forward so fast that Danny didn't have the time to dodge her before she rammed the crown on his head.

 **And… cliff-hanger. I think that explains Mariah's motives more or less. Let me know what you think.**

 **Make sure to check out my website to participate in the poll. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	18. Chapter 18

Sam was sitting in the back of the Speeder. Tucker had taken over driving after they'd stopped at Dora's castle and updated her on the situation. They'd been flying aimlessly through the Ghost Zone for hours. Maybe even a day at this point. Maddie, Jazz and Bianca had fallen asleep. The stress had gotten to them. Jack was scanning the swirling green gases outside like he might spot Danny just floating around out there.

The image of Danny's pale shocked face surfaced in Sam's mind. She had never seen him like that before. She'd seen him hurt, he'd broken his arm once when they were younger, before Phantom. There was a ghost boar once that managed to catch Danny off guard a few months ago. That had bled a lot but it wasn't deep. There was that concussion before his secret had gotten out. Tucker had called out to him and Danny had looked away for a split second before being swatted straight into a wall, head first. It had been in his early days of ghost hunting, both Sam and Tucker had learned after that not to distract Danny when fighting ghosts. But the pale shocked face was unnerving for Sam. She tried to brush the image away but she couldn't. What if they never found Danny and that was the last time she ever saw him? They had stupidly forgotten to grab a boo-merang in their rush and no one wanted to leave the Ghost Zone until they found Danny.

Sam shook the image out of her mind and went over the list of ghosts they had gone to and could go to. They'd been to the Far Frozen, Dora, Clockwork… they'd called out to a few random ghosts through the Ghost Zone… they'd seen the Box Ghost and Klemper, not that they were helpful. They were debating about going to some of Danny's enemies now. They were reluctant to go near Walker, but maybe the Ghost Writer, last they heard he'd been released from prison. It was a shame really that Skulker and Ember weren't in their lairs right now, they were usually quite easy to talk into helping. Technus might help, it depended if he got started on a monologue or a long winded introduction.

She sighed sadly. There were so few ghosts that they could talk to without Danny there to mediate things. She turned to the window beside her and stared unseeingly into the green world outside. She hoped that Frostbite was right and that Mariah Dark would treat Danny's wound. She couldn't help but recall that the queen was the reason that Frostbite had ice instead of an arm. Danny liked to rile up his enemies with insults and witty banter. If he did that with Mariah… Sam didn't want to think about it. She had to focus on the fact that Mariah wanted Danny alive for some reason.

Suddenly she spotted a ghost floating through the Ghost Zone. It was female, wearing white clothes and carrying a large bag, green skinned, white hair. Sam narrowed her eyes cautiously but she did sense that this was a gentle ghost.

"Tucker stop the Speeder. There's a ghost we might be able to talk to," Sam called to Tucker. Jack turned to her and with a couple of steps was beside her, looking out the window at the ghost. The ghost turned to them and seemed to recognise the vehicle. She started to float closer. Tucker joined Sam and Jack watching the ghost. The ghost bit her lip and nodded to herself and floated parallel to the vehicle and headed to the front of the Speeder. Sam, Tucker and Jack rushed to the front of the Speeder, Sam grabbing a wrist ray just in case she was wrong and this ghost was dangerous. After all even Dora would be dangerous sometimes.

The ghost stopped a few feet directly in front of the Speeder. Sam, Tucker and Jack stood at the front and waited for the ghost to show its intentions. No ghosts had gone to them yet. The fact that the ghost had seemed to recognise something about the Speeder didn't sit well with Sam or Tucker. They'd never met this ghost. She had no apparent reason to recognise it. She might be a messenger from Mariah or one of their allies with news. It might be Mariah's way of telling them to stop looking. It might just be a curious ghost.

"What do you think it wants?" Jack asked nervously.

"I don't know. It might be from Dora or Frostbite. They did promise to let us know if they found something," Tucker suggested.

"But Frostbite would have sent one of the Far Frozen and Dora would have sent one of her subjects. This ghost is nothing like their people," Sam reminded them.

"What's going on?" Jazz yawned. Tucker turned to Jazz and motioned for her to join them.

"A ghost just came over to us. We don't know what she wants yet," Tucker informed her as Jazz got up from her bed.

"I'll wake mom and Bianca, if something happens, we'll need them to be ready," Jazz decided and began to shake Bianca's shoulder gently.

Within a few seconds the six humans were gathered at the front of the Speeder, watching the ghost as she surveyed them.

"This is stupid! I'm asking her what she wants," Sam growled after another minute of tense silence. Before anyone could stop her, Sam grabbed a microphone and turned on the outside speaker. The ghost tensed nervously as the speaker appeared on the top of the speaker but held her ground.

"What do you want?" Sam asked angrily. The ghost seemed a little taken aback.

"Give me that, Sam you're scaring her," Jazz hissed and took the microphone.

"Sorry about Sam, she's under a lot of stress right now. Did you want to say anything to us?" Jazz asked gently. The ghost seemed to relax and nodded.

"I have a message from Danny Phantom," the ghost called to them through the glass. The humans tensed.

"How do we know this isn't a trick?" Jazz replied slowly. The ghost smiled sadly.

"Because he gave me something to give you to show you that he sent me," the ghost answered. The ghost reached into her dress and pulled out something small.

"May I phase it into your ship?" the ghost inquired. The humans glanced at each other nervously before nodding uncertainly to the ghost.

The ghost slowly floated closer and held out her hand to the dome glass front. Her hand passed slowly inside and gently placed the item on the dash. She then removed her hand and backed away to her previous safe distance. No one moved for a moment before turning to what the ghost had given them. Sam gasped as she recognised the item as an ice statue of herself, including the jacket Danny had given her. Sam carefully picked it up and examined it closer. It was her in every detail except the DP logo on the back. It was an obvious mistake or message. The statue felt cold to the touch but there was an odd buzzing to it as well. Almost like it were a charged battery.

Maddie carefully took the statue and turned it over in her hands before glancing at a console in the back. She bit her lip and stepped over to it. She placed the statue under an analyser and a red beam swept over it. It was a new addition, for times when ghosts ran away before Danny could catch them. It didn't track ghosts but it read their ecto signatures left behind on items that the ghosts interacted with. It was then matched with their existing library of ecto signatures and was identified. That way, they always knew what they were dealing with. The red beam scanned the statue and the computer attached began to search their files. Then a picture of Danny blinked onto the screen and the words ecto signature matched.

 **In case it wasn't obvious, yes, the ghost is Nurse Green.**

 **Any guesses what happened to Danny? Because it'll be a chapter or so before we see him again.**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.**

 **Make sure to check out my website and cast your vote for the next fanfic I post. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	19. Chapter 19

Everyone turned to the ghost floating outside the Spectre Speeder. She was waiting patiently. Jazz was still holding the microphone. She cleared her throat and brought the microphone up to her mouth again.

"How do we know you didn't force him to make that statue?" Jazz asked slowly. She didn't believe that Danny had been forced to make the ice statue. But she had to ask. The ghost nodded.

"You don't I guess. But he did give me a message to tell you," the ghost reminded them. Jazz nodded encouragingly. The ghost smiled warmly.

"He told me to tell you that he's alright," the ghost recalled easily. The humans waited. That couldn't possibly be it, could it?

Sam cleared her throat and gently took the microphone from Jazz.

"Go on," she prompted softly. The ghost shrugged.

"That's all he wanted me to say. He said he could ask me to tell you to go home but he knew you wouldn't listen," the ghost elaborated. They all glanced at each other. That certainly sounded like Danny.

"Why did he ask you to deliver the message?" Sam asked carefully. The ghost nodded encouragingly.

"Because I helped him. I healed his back for him. He knew I couldn't help him any more than I did and so asked me to keep an eye out for your ship. He warned me to approach you carefully and ensure that you knew I wasn't threat and gave me that statue to give you," the ghost explained.

Sam nearly dropped the microphone in shock. This ghost had helped Danny.

"Where is he?" Sam demanded. The ghost looked suddenly sad.

"When I left, he was being taken to the queen for an audience. I hope he listened to my advice but he should still be in her castle," the ghost answered. Maddie took the microphone from Sam.

"Listen, Danny is my son. I want to see him. Can you take us to that castle?" Maddie asked sternly. The ghost looked conflicted. She glanced around them and floated a little closer.

"Could I come in? I'd rather not be seen talking to you if I can help it. The queen will have my head if she knew," the ghost inquired, desperation creeping in to her echoing voice. Maddie glanced at Jack, who nodded. This ghost was willing to help them. Besides if she attacked, they could defend themselves.

Maddie nodded to the ghost who smiled in relief and phased into the ship. She set down her large bag with a soft thud on the ground and stood in the middle of the ship. Maddie tapped a button and the exterior speaker folded away and put down the microphone. She turned to the ghost. Bianca shrank behind Jazz fearfully. Her awe and wonder of the Ghost Zone had clearly disappeared after what had happened to Danny.

"Can you take us to Danny?" Maddie asked again. The ghost bit her lip.

"I… I could give you directions… but I can't help you any more than that. I'm not a fighter. I'm a nurse," the ghost suggested nervously.

"A nurse?" Tucker repeated, suddenly his knees began to shake. The ghost nodded.

"Nurse Green. Queen Mariah called me to her castle to treat Danny after he was injured," the ghost replied, oblivious to Tucker's discomfort.

"You treated Danny then?" Jazz prompted. The ghost nodded with a warm smile.

"I treat many ghosts. Although I'll admit treating a halfa was new. But his wound has completely healed," Nurse Green affirmed.

"Thank you," Jazz replied softly. The nurse looked a little taken aback but smiled.

"I was more than happy to do it. It is thanks to him that the Ghost Zone isn't controlled by that tyrant, Pariah Dark. It's because of him that the Ghost Zone is still around. I wish I could have helped him more. But like I said I'm not fighter and there are ghosts out there that need me," Nurse Green retorted.

"If you help us save Danny, I'm sure we can protect you from Mariah," Sam attempted, scowling at Tucker who'd shut his eyes and began muttering under his breath about supermodels. The ghost blinked in surprise but shook her head.

"You don't stand a chance against the queen. She has invented many items in her time, she only distributes a small number of her creations. She gave me this bag you know. I'm afraid rescue would be near impossible if at all," Nurse Green countered sadly.

Sam had had enough. She stepped forward and glared at Nurse Green.

"Before Danny, would you have said imprisoning Pariah Dark was impossible? What about a half ghost hybrid? Danny _is_ impossible! If anyone could defy your queen, he can. But he needs help," Sam exclaimed furiously. Nurse Green regarded the girl carefully.

"It won't be easy," Nurse Green began.

"We never expected things to always be as easy as stuffing the Box Ghost in a thermos. We're not leaving the Ghost Zone without him. Now you can either help us, or you can leave and stop wasting our time," Sam replied stiffly. The Speeder was silent.

Nurse Green looked at Sam, searching for something. Sam kept her enraged expression. Nurse Green laughed softly.

"Very well. I'll lead you to Queen Mariah's castle. But I won't be able to help in any fighting. I will remain here and if any of you get injured, I'll treat you," Nurse Green offered, a lot more confident and willing. Sam blinked in surprise.

"You'll help us?" She whispered in disbelief. The ghost nodded.

"You reminded me of Danny. He may have been injured but he was strong like you. Impressively so," Nurse Green informed her. Sam blushed with embarrassment but also pride.

 **And so, the rescue team is on their way.**

 **Let me know what you think of the story so far.**

 **Don't miss your chance to have your say in the poll on my website. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	20. Chapter 20

Tucker opted to drive again. That way he could focus on something other than the ghost nurse in the Spectre Speeder. He may have been better with doctors and hospitals but nurses still scared him for some reason. He could usually manage his fear but the nurse had been sprung on him so unexpectedly. But with driving to distract him, he could listen to the conversation going on behind him.

Sam, Jack, Jazz, Maddie and Bianca had gathered around Nurse Green, who had been given a seat.

"How bad was his wound?" Maddie asked cautiously. She wasn't sure if she truly wanted to know but felt that as his mother, she had to know. Nurse Green nodded slowly.

"It could have been worse. He was in his human form when I got to him. He was in danger of bleeding out but I managed to stop it. He woke up after a couple of hours and I was able to examine the wound properly in his ghost form. It was deep. At the surface the cut was clean. But deeper it wasn't. Thankfully the queen stopped before reaching his heart and most of the damage was due to him losing his intangibility and his body becoming solid around the blade. But it was easily fixed and there won't even be a scar," Nurse Green informed them.

The humans sighed in relief. A weight they hadn't realised was there suddenly lifted. They were silent, lost in thought.

"Turn right here," Nurse Green called to Tucker as they reached a barren chunk of rock floating in the Ghost Zone. Tucker complied.

"How come we've never met you before?" Jazz asked, eager to break the silence. Nurse Green shrugged.

"I don't know. I've treated plenty of Danny's enemies in the past. I've been around. I suppose we've just never crossed paths… until now that is," Nurse Green answered.

"How well is this castle defended?" Jack asked, now that the conversation had been reopened. Nurse Green bit her lip and shrugged.

"I'm sorry, I wouldn't know. I don't look at those kinds of things. I know that the queen's messenger is fast and an accomplished fighter. Chances are there will be defences also. But I can't tell you anything else," Nurse Green admitted.

The Speeder fell silent again. It was obvious that Nurse Green didn't have the answers they wanted after all. And the answers she did have weren't ones that anyone wanted to ask.

"Turn left and then head down. We're almost there," Nurse Green called to Tucker. Tucker nodded stiffly and directed the Spectre Speeder to do as the ghost told him.

Bianca shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Why do ghosts attack Danny?" Bianca asked softly, almost like she couldn't help but ask. Sam was about to answer, but she didn't know the actual answer. They'd always assumed that ghosts didn't go after Danny exactly until Danny had shoved them into a thermos a couple of times. But Mariah had never met Danny before she went after him. Undergrowth hadn't either and he'd gone after Amity Park first and so Danny. Sam turned to Nurse Green and waited for an actual ghost to answer the question.

"Sometimes it's for revenge. Sometimes, like with Skulker, it's for honour. Sometimes it's because ghosts see Danny as a challenge for them to conquer. There are many reasons. But usually it's because Danny is a powerful ghost who is constantly stopping other ghosts from doing what they want. Danny has made himself a target because he targets ghosts," Nurse Green answered simply. The Speeder was silent again.

"Uh, guys! I think we're here," Tucker called back. Everyone got up and rushed to the front of the Speeder to see a massive dark red stone castle slowly growing closer.

"That's it," Nurse Green confirmed as Tucker landed the Spectre Speeder behind a boulder, hiding them from sight.

"This is as far as I go. Be warned, Queen Mariah is a formidable fighter and is incredibly strong. She also has numerous spectral items to aid her. Don't take her lightly, and never drop your guard," Nurse Green warned them before retreating to a dark corner at the back of the Speeder.

 **And the rescue team has arrived.**

 **In the next chapter, you'll see what that crown Mariah put on Danny has done. But beforehand... any guesses?**

 **Make sure to cast your vote in the poll on my website. There's a link in my bio.**

 **So, until the next chapter.**


	21. Chapter 21

It was decided that Bianca would stay in the Speeder. Bianca had no ghost hunting experience so it was way too dangerous to bring her along. Jazz volunteered to stay behind. Bianca was her friend and besides Jazz didn't have the best aim when it came to Danny. For some reason she often managed to hit him no matter how hard she tried not to. She'd gotten a lot better, but a rescue mission wasn't the time for risks.

Sam, Tucker, Maddie and Jack crept along the rocky ridge, closer to the castle ahead. They'd brought all the weapons they could possibly carry. In Jack and Maddie's case, that was a lot. They reached the end of the rocky ridge and turned to each other. They took a collective steadying breath and nodded to each other. As one they stepped out of hiding and waited a moment before continuing. Expecting to trigger an alarm or something at any minute.

They reached the front doors. They were wooden but reinforced with iron. They were also massive. Maddie took out a grenade of some kind and was ready to activate it before Sam grabbed her hand.

"No need Mrs Fenton. In the Ghost Zone, humans can pass through stuff… usually. Tucker," Sam whispered with a smile and nodded to Tucker. He mock-saluted her and stepped through the door. Maddie and Jack stared at the door, wide-eyed. Sam smirked.

"You don't want to know how we learned that," She remarked as she stepped through the door after Tucker. Maddie and Jack glanced at each other before following the teens.

Tucker jumped out of the way of a green ghost ray and the two parents saw the ghost that had attacked at the parade firing multiple ghost rays at Sam and Tucker. Maddie slipped the grenade away and pulled out an ecto-gun. Maddie quickly activated it and aimed it at the ghost. Jack did the same and then they jumped apart as the ghost noticed them and fired ghost rays at them. The ghost was fast. None of the hunters could sneak up on her. In fact it was hard enough to dodge the ghost rays. Before long the small courtyard they'd entered had been destroyed.

"What is the meaning of this?!" a voice boomed. The fighting froze. As one, the ghost and four humans turned to the source of the voice. Queen Mariah glowered at them angrily.

"They are intruders," the ghost hissed fearfully. The queen turned to the four humans and scowled.

"I see. You want to see Danny? Not a problem," the queen guessed and waved a hand behind her.

Danny Phantom walked out of the shadows behind her. He seemed dazed and a little confused. He was wearing a crown and he stopped beside Mariah. He swept his gaze over the four humans without recognising them.

"What do you want?" he muttered like he had a pounding headache. Sam took a step forwards, ignoring the murmured warnings and a hissed threat from the ghost.

"Danny, it's me. We're here to take you home," Sam informed him gently, desperately trying to hide her fear and hurt at his expression.

Danny narrowed his eyes and glanced at Mariah.

"Home? I thought this was home," Danny murmured to himself, confused.

"It is Danny. These people are intruders. Here to kidnap you. They'll say anything to get you to go with them. They want to stop you becoming king," the queen lied.

"We are not! Danny, I'm your girlfriend. These are your parents and Tucker, your best friend. Mariah kidnapped you," Sam attempted. Danny frowned.

"If you're my girlfriend, why would I marry Queen Mariah?" Danny asked. Mariah smiled at Danny before scowling at the four humans.

"Danny, I think it would be best to arrest these trespassers, don't you?" Mariah suggested. Danny nodded slowly.

"Right, you know best," Danny agreed slowly. The humans gasped in horror before they attempted to run away. They weren't prepared for a brainwashed Danny. They had thought they'd get in, find Danny, probably fight off Mariah and then go home. They needed to retreat and regroup. Danny flew at them and the female ghost charged at them at the same time. Before they knew what had happened, Danny and the messenger ghost had them on the ground and four skeletal guards had marched into the courtyard.

"Take them to the dungeon. We have a marriage to plan, right Danny?" Mariah ordered. Danny nodded slowly.

"Right," Danny agreed. The skeletons pulled the humans to their feet and dragged them out of the courtyard into the depths of the castle. Mariah smiled triumphantly while Danny scowled at them, still a little confused.

 **I've written a few stories where Danny is put under mind control. I want to say this right now, it's explained more in the next few chapters, but Danny isn't being controlled. It's far more complex than mind control. I wanted to have Danny in a position where he wasn't himself but not being controlled.**

 **Any thoughts on what Danny's loved ones are going to do now?**

 **Let me know what you guys think.**

 **Make sure to check out my website and cast your vote in the poll before it's too late. Only a few days left. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Anyway… until the next chapter.**


	22. Chapter 22

Sam kicked the wall angrily. They couldn't walk through the walls in this stupid dungeon. Maddie and Tucker were bent over his PDA trying to get a signal to Jazz in the Spectre Speeder. They had to tell Jazz what had happened to Danny and they needed back up. Valerie had the most experience in fighting Danny if it came down to it. Jack meanwhile was slouched in a corner, deep in thought.

"Jazz?" Maddie asked loudly and a static sound came from Tucker's PDA.

"Mom? What's going on?" Jazz's voice replied. It was a little patchy but at least they could talk.

"We got caught. You need to get back up. Better go back home and get Valerie," Tucker answered grimly.

"Caught? How? I thought you were just going in there to find Danny?" Jazz inquired confused.

"We were. We… we found him but… but there's something wrong with him. He wasn't himself," Maddie agreed cautiously.

"What happened?" Jazz's voice demanded, voice filled with worry.

"He attacked us when Mariah told him to. He didn't recognise us," Tucker answered reluctantly.

"That doesn't make sense. She must have done something to him," Jazz guessed. Maddie nodded thoughtfully.

"He was wearing a crown. Mariah must have given it to him," Jack called out to the PDA.

"Dad? Is Sam there too?" Jazz asked.

"Yeah, I'm here," Sam confirmed angrily, kicking the wall again.

"How was he acting? I doubt Mariah would want to fully control Danny if she wanted him to rule the Ghost Zone," Jazz asked after a moment of thought. Sam stopped kicking the wall.

"He looked really confused," Sam recalled.

"He also looked like he had a headache," Tucker remembered.

"Also seemed to have forgotten things. Like who we were, where he lived, that he didn't want to marry Mariah," Jack added.

"He seemed to trust Mariah's words as well. He listened to her and followed any suggestions or veiled orders," Maddie concluded. There was a moment of static filled silence.

"Jazz?" Maddie called.

"I'm still here mom. I think, from what you guys have said, he has free will. You can talk him around if you ask hard enough questions without Mariah being around. But I also think that you're right mom, he trusts Mariah more than us right now. If she advises him to get rid of you guys… I don't know. I'd like to think that he wouldn't but under her lose control, I don't know. Personally, I think Mariah is taking a big risk by controlling Danny this way," Jazz mused aloud to them.

"Risk? What makes you think that?" Sam asked confused.

"If he finds out that the one person he trusts is using him and he doesn't have anyone to turn to… he might do something he'd regret. It could force him into a breakdown. Mariah has pushed Danny's mind to a point that the tiniest change might be his breaking point. She's made him so confused that he'll listen to her. He'll do whatever she tells him because he has nothing else to turn to," Jazz explained.

The cell was silent. This wasn't good. If they tried to convince Danny that he couldn't trust Mariah, they might destroy him. They realised that they had to convince Danny to believe them and trust them rather than turning him against Mariah. And that meant that he couldn't be relied upon to fight with them.

"What do you suggest Jazz?" Tucker asked.

"Talk to him. Show how well you know him. Tell him about himself. That's only thing he's certain of right now, probably. Also approach him carefully. He mightn't believe you at first. He might fight against the truth and lash out at you. But try to talk to him when Mariah isn't around. If she's around, she can lie to him and make you look like liars. Don't openly contradict her either. He's going to listen to her over you right now. Tell him things that when they're put with things that Mariah says, things won't make sense. Then he'll be forced to think about which of you is right. Hopefully that'll sway him to our side again," Jazz explained.

"Jazz, Mariah told him that we'd say anything to get him to come with us and prevent him from becoming king," Sam recalled bitterly.

"Then don't try to convince him to go home. In fact, try to convince him to ask Mariah to go to the Far Frozen. Frostbite will show him the shrine and explain things. An outside party might be able to convince Danny better than you can," Jazz replied knowingly.

"You think that'll work Jazz?" Jack asked softly.

"It should. This isn't a fight. It's a psychological battle for Danny. Mariah has had a head start. The crown is the source of this but there is no way you'd be able to get close enough to get it off him. When he starts piecing things together for himself, chances are, he'll take it off himself. Hopefully that won't damage his mind and he'll just snap back to normal," Jazz affirmed.

"And how are we going to get talking to Danny when we're locked up in the dungeon?" Sam grumbled.

"If I know my little brother, he'll come to you at some point. What did you tell him or do in front of him?" Jazz replied.

"We told him who we were and that we wanted to take him home. Then Mariah told him to arrest us," Tucker answered.

"Did you fight back?" Jazz asked.

"Of course not," Maddie exclaimed.

"Then you've already contradicted something Mariah said. She said you'd do anything to prevent him becoming king. Then you let yourselves get arrested. It won't make sense to Danny and he'll go to you to get some answers. He'll be cautious and I'd advise you to keep your distance but he'll be open to talking to you," Jazz pointed out.

"How can you be so sure Jazz? He's not himself anymore," Tucker inquired sadly.

"Tucker, I've been studying Danny's mind for a long time. I've been keeping a close eye on him in case the stress of being Danny Phantom caught up to him at some point, especially before Danny knew I knew his secret. Trust me, Danny is still in there and he can be talked around. I'll go back to Amity Park and tell Valerie everything. Then I'll go to Frostbite and explain the situation," Jazz answered confidently.

"Alright, be careful. Do you know your way?" Maddie replied.

"Um… I'm sure Nurse Green will help me find my way," Jazz retorted nervously.

"Mr and Mrs Fenton, did you manage to salvage any of the old software from the first Spectre Speeder?" Tucker asked.

"Yeah, we based most of the software off the remnants of the escape pod you kids brought back, why?" Jack answered.

"Because I kept a computerised Ghost Zone map in the Speeder software. When Danny first started to map out the Ghost Zone, we got hopelessly lost. We ended up in the Far Frozen and Frostbite let us borrow the Infi-map. I input the co-ordinates of the Fenton Ghost portal and the Far Frozen and ever since, I've kept a digital record on my PDA and it was backed up on the first Spectre Speeder. If that file is in the Spectre Speeder mark two, it should be able to direct Jazz home. It's under Tucker's Hallowe'en map," Tucker explained.

A moment of silence.

"Yeah, it's here! Wow Tucker, you're a life saver," Jazz announced happily. Tucker looked smug but refrained from commenting.

"We'll go back to Amity Park and get Valerie. Then I'll go to the Far Frozen. Remember don't contradict Mariah openly and be careful. Danny will come to you, I know it," Jazz continued and they heard the engines fire up on the Speeder.

"Jazz, the ghost defences are still on in Fenton Works. Nurse Green can't go through the portal until they're shut off," Maddie reminded her daughter.

"Got it mom. I'll be back with help," Jazz replied as a farewell before the connection grew weaker until it completely disappeared.

 **And Danny's situation is explained more. The next few chapters are mainly from Danny's point of view. So you'll be able to see how what Mariah did is affecting him.**

 **Let me know what you guys think.**

 **So, I have two announcements.**

 **First. Last day of the poll. Don't miss your chance to vote on my website. There's a link in my bio.**

 **Second. I'm collaborating with brycewade1013 on a massive project involving numerous Marvel movies and cartoon programmes up to and including Danny Phantom, Kim Possible, Phineas and Ferb and more. There's a link to brycewade1013 account on my website. But I'll also be posting the project on my account too. However, it won't be as regular as my normal stories but I will still be posting my own stories. So check it out.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Important A/N at bottom**

Danny walked down the stone corridor, deep in thought. Things didn't make sense. Those intruders were meant to be after him and yet they hadn't attacked. They had weapons. Lots of them. The skeleton guards Mariah kept to hand had confiscated them. At least the weapons they could find. They could have attacked the castle and grabbed him in the confusion, but they didn't. They crept inside. They said they were there to take him home. Maybe Mariah was wrong. Maybe these intruders weren't a threat and they were just a little confused.

Mariah had told him how they were engaged to be married so that he could become king and rule the Ghost Zone. Everything about his past was so fuzzy. Like a dream. Forgotten except for a few inconsistent bits and pieces. He could remember a lot of ghost fights. Mariah had told him that he had acted as a hero for the Ghost Zone. Rounding up troublemakers and handing them to Walker. He'd even gone so far as to chase after ghosts in the human world and protect the inhabitants. Danny couldn't help but know that was right. He had a lot of random memories of a town with a blue sky and human inhabitants. Never of people, mostly of places. Like Casper High and the Nasty Burger.

Mariah had told him that he was an exceptionally rare ghost. A halfa. Half ghost and yet half human. She told him how that had drawn her to him. He alone understood the true meaning of balance between the worlds. She told him that when an arrogant ghost named Vlad Plasmius had freed her brother, Pariah Dark, the previous Ghost King, Danny had been the one to stand up and fight the ghost. Danny scowled. The name Plasmius made him furious for some reason. Perhaps he'd dealt with that ghost a lot in the past. She told him how he had been the one to unite the human and ghost worlds against a threat dubbed the disasteroid. A meteor made completely of ectoranium, an anti-ghost element. It had threatened to destroy the human world and so the Ghost Zone.

Because he had saved both worlds, both worlds knew him. Humans revered him and some ghosts even worshipped him. That had made Mariah's decision clear. He'd been crowned as heir a month ago apparently and a day or two ago there was an accident where he hit his head. Danny didn't think that was right. If he'd been wearing this crown for a month, surely he'd be used to it by now. Maybe he'd defied Mariah and taken it off when he was alone. He'd asked her already if he could. It gave him a terrible headache. But Mariah had told him to never take it off. To take it off would mean he no longer wanted to be king and a lesser ghost might take advantage of his mistake. A ghost might take the crown and so the throne and rule the Ghost Zone into ruin and destroy everything he and Mariah cared about.

He scratched his head at the rim of the crown, hoping to dislodge it the tiniest amount so he could relieve some of his headache. Surely he could get the crown refitted or something so he wouldn't constantly feel like his head was splitting in half. Maybe he'd ask Mariah. But she seemed to be in a bad mood ever since the intruders had arrived.

But something those intruders had said stuck with him. The adults claimed to be his parents. If they were his parents why had they crept into the castle? Why hadn't they been with him when he woke up earlier feeling confused and lost? Mariah had been. She'd helped to fill in some of the blanks. But then again, he couldn't prove that they weren't his parents. They didn't look anything like his ghost half, but his human half… the man had looked a little like him. Maybe. But maybe he was looking for connections when they weren't there.

Danny wasn't really looking where he was going and it wasn't until he noticed how much darker the hall was before he noticed he had walked down towards the dungeons. He stopped. He shouldn't be here. He was going against what Mariah wanted. But then again she had never told him not to go and talk with them. He just had to be careful. His gut was telling him he should speak with these people. But his head was telling him to get as far away as possible. He bit his lip nervously and stood there debating which way he should go.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He turned himself invisible and walked forwards. He wouldn't talk to them but he would listen in to what they were saying when they thought they were alone. It was a compromise. He wouldn't speak with them according to his head but he'd check them out more following his gut.

 **So, Jazz was right about Danny going to his family and friends for answers. He is playing it cautious though because he isn't sure. But I wanted to explain how the crown was affecting Danny in detail from his point of view. Let me know what you think.**

 **So, I need to inform you guys of some stuff.**

 **First. The poll is closed! The advert for the winner will be posted both on my facebook page and website from now on. So check it out. (It'll be in sneak peaks not videos). There's links in my bio.**

 **Second. Tomorrow I'm going on holiday to America. Which means, my timing for chapters is going to get screwed up. I will strive to keep putting a chapter a day up but with time differences it might be two a day or a chapter every day depending on where you are and if I can get internet. Just wanted to warn you guys in case I missed a day or something.**

 **Third. I was late posting the last chapter. Honestly, I thought I posted it but it didn't go up. So if you have no idea what was going on, then you might have missed a chapter.**

 **And finally fourth. It was mentioned in the last chapter a/n but like I said in the previous point, it got posted up late. Brycewade1013 has asked me to help them on a massive project spanning numerous Marvel movies and incorporating numerous characters such as Big Hero 6, Kim Possible, Lilo and Stitch, Danny Phantom and more. The full details are on their page and if I could do links I'd put one here. However there is a link on my website under news. I will be posting the story on my page too though so don't worry. Chapters will not follow my usual chapter a day style but it should have regular posts, hopefully. And be assured, I will still be putting up my own stories as normal, it won't affect my writing.**

 **Wow, that was a lot. I bet you guys have had enough to listening to me for one day. So I'll leave you here.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	24. Chapter 24

Danny leant against the wall and listened to the conversation in the cell behind him.

"-Think we should tell him about the kids at school?" the boy asked.

"It might jog some memories," the woman answered. The girl scoffed.

"Yeah, bad ones. Before his secret got out, he was considered a loser. No offense Mrs. Fenton, but I think we should steer clear of mentioning anything about school, especially Dash. Even now, Danny doesn't like Dash. I mean last week, Danny nearly overshadowed Dash to get him to lay off Mikey. If I hadn't been there, I'd say he would have done it too," the girl informed them. Danny frowned to himself. The name Dash sounded familiar. And just like the girl said, the name made him angry. Not as angry as the name Plasmius but still angry.

"Alright, so no school. But we're running out of subjects to tell him about. Don't tell him about the early days of ghost hunting because he might remember that we hunted him without remembering the fact that we didn't know it was him. Don't tell him about Valerie in case he remembers the whole "I'm gonna waste you ghost" thing. Don't tell him about school. Don't tell him about our home life in case we tell him how obsessive we used to be about catching ghosts," the man listed grumpily.

"We could tell him about his life as Phantom after the disasteroid," the woman suggested.

"I think we're getting away from what Jazz said we should do. She said to tell him about himself. To explain things to him that don't openly contradict with what that ghost told him and let him piece it all together," the girl recalled. Danny stiffened. Jazz. That name felt familiar too. But that had good feelings attached to it. He almost felt protective over the name. Danny bit his lip, he'd promised himself that he wouldn't talk to them.

"So what do you suggest?" the boy huffed.

"I don't know. Maybe we should ask him why he wants to marry Mariah. We know he doesn't, but maybe he doesn't realise that. I mean he doesn't love her. He might trust her now but he didn't before she took him," the girl mumbled sadly.

Danny frowned to himself. He hadn't thought about that. Did he want to be king? Did it matter? If he didn't become king, then another ghost might take the throne and the Ghost Zone would be doomed. However that excuse felt hollow. Pariah Dark had been imprisoned for thousands of years. Mariah had taken over. Why did she want to give the title to him? Danny shook the thoughts away. He would become king for the good of ghosts everywhere. It didn't matter if he wanted the title or if he loved Mariah or not. It was his duty.

"We could tell him about his hero complex," the woman suggested with a smile.

"What about your argument?" the boy chuckled.

"Do you have to bring that up? You can't say that the Ghost Zone isn't a dangerous place after what has happened," the woman grumbled.

"True, but you have to admit that it isn't as dangerous as you thought. Danny has friends in here that he can rely on," the girl countered. There was a pause.

"I suppose that is true. Why didn't Danny tell us about Frostbite and Dora and Pandora? If I'd known about them, maybe I would have understood," the woman asked sadly.

"Danny was never sure when the best time to introduce you guys was. But he did tell you about them. Frostbite was the one to teach Danny how to control his ice powers," the girl replied.

Frostbite. That name felt familiar too. Another name he felt good about. This time though it wasn't a protective feeling, more a respectful one. That made sense if Frostbite had taught him. Perhaps Frostbite could fill in more of the blanks in his head. He'd have to ask Mariah if he could go. He didn't think he'd be able to find wherever Frostbite was in his current state without help.

Danny pushed himself away from the wall carefully. He had questions, maybe the Frostbite would have the answers. He stepped away from the cell door and accidently scuffed his boot on the uneven stone floor. He froze.

"Did you hear that?" the man exclaimed softly. He heard running and turned slowly to see over his invisible shoulder to see the girl peering through the barred window on the metal door. She looked up and down the corridor.

"I can't see anyone. But with ghosts that not unusual," she commented. Danny waited for the girl to step away from the door, in case he messed up again, before continuing down the corridor.

"Do you reckon it was Danny? Jazz said he'd come down at some point," the boy asked loudly. Danny smirked to himself, they thought he'd already gone but then frowned. They'd known he would come to see them.

"Maybe," the girl muttered, still watching the corridor.

"How much do you think he heard?" the woman remarked. The girl shrugged and turned away from the door.

"Hopefully enough to show him that we're on his side," the girl retorted and Danny heard her walk away from the door.

He took a deep breath and turned back towards the exit and carefully crept back to the well-lit, lavish corridors above. He was convinced that these people weren't going to hurt him now. In fact, he'd almost say that they knew him really well. But that couldn't be right. He didn't remember them and Mariah hadn't told him about any human friends. He shrugged to himself and became visible as he saw the first torches in front of him. He'd made up his mind. Despite Mariah's bad mood, he was going to ask if he could go to see Frostbite.

 **And unintentionally, mission accomplished. Danny wants to visit Frostbite.**

 **But will he visit Frostbite is another matter. What do you think?**

 **Today I'm travelling to America so the next chapter might be delayed.**

 **Don't forget to check out my website and watched the advert for the winner of the poll.**

 **Until the next chapter…**


	25. Chapter 25

Danny knocked on the massive throne room door. It creaked open slightly and Mariah's messenger stuck her head out. She gave him a toothy smile and stepped to one side allowing him inside.

"You look serious," she commented in her hissing voice.

"I want to ask Queen Mariah something," Danny informed her softly as they walked towards the occupied throne. The messenger floated in front of Danny and stared at him.

"The queen isn't in a good mood. You should probably wait," the messenger advised him. He nodded to her.

"I know that. But this is important to me. It won't take long and it isn't a big request," Danny reassured her with a small smile. He then gently pushed past her.

He stopped in front of Mariah and dipped his head to her. She smiled to him and sat up straighter.

"Danny, what brings you here? You said you wanted to take a walk and try to clear your headache," Mariah asked brightly. Danny smiled back at her and nodded.

"I did take a walk. And I… recalled a name. Frostbite. Would it be possible for me to meet with him? Things about my past still don't make sense to me," Danny requested politely. For some reason he wanted to keep the intruders out of this conversation at all costs. He knew mentioning them would anger Mariah but he had an absurd feeling that the intruders needed to be protected.

Mariah's smile faded into a tight line.

"Where did you hear that name?" Mariah whispered.

"I… I just remembered it is all," Danny attempted. It wasn't a complete lie. After he'd heard the name, his mind had fitted together a kindly white creature in a snowy tundra somewhere in the Ghost Zone. Danny liked to think that given time he would've recalled the ghost on his own.

"Don't lie to me Danny! Who told you that name?" Mariah growled dangerously.

"No one told me," Danny replied sternly. Mariah leapt to her feet furiously.

"Danny, where did you hear that name? Who told you about Frostbite?!" Mariah shouted.

Danny took an involuntary step back and held up his hands, trying to calm the queen down.

"No one told me Queen Mariah. I overheard a conversation and the name was mentioned. He's a friend of mine right? I just want to speak with him. I could take a trip out into the Ghost Zone and meet with him," Danny explained. Mariah calmed down slightly but remained standing.

"He was, a long time ago. He betrayed us Danny. You can't trust that ghost. Besides travelling through the Ghost Zone is too dangerous for you," Mariah answered. Danny scowled in annoyance. That comment felt a little too familiar.

"You said that I am a powerful ghost. Surely there are no ghosts out there that would dare attack me. Also with me becoming the future Ghost King, any that did would be foolish. Please Mariah, I really feel that I should speak with Frostbite. I'll take a couple of skeleton guards if it makes you feel better. I'll be careful, but this is something I need to do," Danny replied, angrily at first but dropping into a pleading tone, hoping that Mariah would allow him. Technically he didn't need to ask Mariah for permission. He could simply take a couple of skeleton guards and order them to show him the way. But he felt that he should ask Mariah first, they were partners after all. He hoped that Mariah understood that.

Mariah folded her arms and narrowed her eyes.

"What conversation were you eavesdropping on Danny?" She asked softly. Danny bit his lip and hoped that Mariah wouldn't press for an answer. Mariah raised an eyebrow.

"Well? Who were you eavesdropping on?" Mariah pressed. Danny sighed, he had no choice.

"You're not going to like it," Danny warned before standing a little straighter.

"I was listening in on the intruders. I was invisible, they didn't know I was there. I was curious to see what they would say when they believed themselves to be alone," Danny admitted and held his breath as he waited for Mariah's reaction.

"You did what?" Mariah muttered angrily.

"I eavesdropped on the prisoners," Danny repeated clearly. Mariah scowled and looked at the messenger hovering off to one side.

"Bring them here," Mariah ordered quietly. Danny resisted the urge to look behind him as he heard the door creak open and thud shut.

"You shouldn't have done that Danny. They are dangerous," Mariah informed him in a forced calm tone. Danny frowned.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think they are. I think they're a little confused. They never attacked and they did seem to know me," Danny contradicted boldly.

Mariah glowered at him.

"You don't," she repeated in a whisper. Danny nodded to her.

"I don't. Some of the things they said… it got me thinking. If I'm a halfa, that must mean that I didn't form like most ghosts, right? Do you know how I was formed? Was I a ghost that changed into a halfa or was I a human first?" Danny asked slowly. Mariah shook her head.

"That doesn't matter," she replied quickly. Danny scowled.

"It matters to me Queen Mariah. If I was human first before I became a halfa, then did I have a family? If I did, where are they? How long have I been a halfa?" Danny questioned, asking questions he didn't realise he had before he could stop himself.

Mariah shook her head slowly.

"That doesn't matter. What matters is who you are now, not how you became what you are," Mariah decided firmly. Danny frowned at her.

"I disagree. If I want to understand who I am, I need to understand what I am first," Danny retorted firmly. They stared at each other. Neither wanted to break the tense silence that had fallen between them. Suddenly the door creaked open again and Danny heard a scuffle. He turned and saw a small group of skeleton guards dragging the four intruders into the throne room.

"What are you doing?" he asked Mariah softly.

"Something I should have done in the first place," she answered stiffly.

 **And things have escalated. Danny is going to be forced to choose between Mariah and his family and friends… Which he chooses…**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	26. Chapter 26

Mariah stepped away from her throne and nodded to her messenger.

"Hold them over at that wall," Mariah ordered the skeletons and pointed to a bare wall. The guards complied.

"What are you doing?" Danny repeated loudly.

"They are too dangerous to allow to live Danny," Mariah answered, not looking at him.

"What? I told you, I don't think they're dangerous," Danny reminded her, shocked. Mariah turned to him, her face a slightly darker colour than usual. She was livid.

"You don't understand. You have forced my hand. Restrain him," Mariah replied angrily. Danny's eyes widened as the messenger grabbed his arms and held him in place.

"What the? Mariah don't do this!" Danny pleaded. Mariah took a step towards him.

" _Queen_ Mariah. You have defied me once today already, don't defy me twice," Mariah growled. Danny scowled. Mariah turned back to the intruders. Some of them were struggling against the skeletons holding them in place. Some of them were watching him in surprise.

"Mariah stop!" Danny commanded, struggling against the messenger holding him. The messenger stiffened.

The queen spun around to face him.

"How dare you?" she whispered dangerously.

"We are partners. You will listen to me," Danny reminded her forcefully.

"I'm sorry Danny, I have to do this. They have poisoned your mind," Mariah retorted angrily. She turned back to the prisoners and pulled out a dagger from a hidden fold of her dress. She approached the girl first. Danny frowned in frustration. Mariah wasn't thinking clearly. She was letting her anger get the better of her. He had to stop her before she did something they'd both regret.

He closed his eyes and focused on his power. He started to glow slightly green before he unleashed a wave of ecto-energy that forced the messenger to release him. He flew forwards and landed in between Mariah and the prisoners.

"Stop! If you do this, I'm not marrying you," Danny told her firmly. He meant it. Mariah stopped in her tracks.

"You… you feel that strongly about this," Mariah muttered in disbelief. Danny nodded slowly.

"Let's talk about this. You said we're partners. That means I listen to what you have to say and you listen to what I have to say and then _together_ we make a decision," Danny reminded her.

He ignored the gasps behind him. Mariah regarded Danny carefully. She lowered her dagger and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Alright then, what do you suggest we do?" Mariah relented reluctantly. Danny licked his lips, he hadn't thought that far yet.

"We… we should return them to the human world. Give them a warning and if they come back, we arrest them and hand them over to Walker to deal with," Danny suggested. Mariah seemed to consider the suggestion but she shook her head.

"Bad idea Danny. That will give them the chance to come up with a better plan and bring reinforcements next time they try to stop you becoming king. Danny you're being too soft," Mariah decided gently, taking a tentative step closer to Danny.

Danny took a step back.

"Yeah, I don't understand that. You said that humans revere me. Why would they be against me becoming the Ghost King?" Danny recalled. Mariah froze.

"I said they revere you, not that they didn't fear you. Becoming Ghost King would make you unbelievably powerful and influential. Humans are afraid that you'll turn on them Danny. It wouldn't be the first time that humans attacked you when you meant no harm," Mariah informed him.

She took another step and pointed her dagger at the prisoners.

"They will stop you becoming king if you let them. Danny, we need to stick together and eradicate this danger," Mariah continued. Danny scowled.

"Why? You told me that since I'm a halfa, I understand the balance. You said that I understand the importance of humans and ghosts. Who are we to decide that these humans are too dangerous to keep around?" Danny challenged her. Mariah snarled in annoyance.

"Danny we don't have the time for this. Stand aside," Mariah ordered.

"That's another thing. Why is me becoming king so urgent? Pariah Dark has been imprisoned for centuries. There hasn't been a king since. Why is it so important that I become king as quickly as possible?" Danny asked. He knew that Mariah couldn't answer these questions, or at least that she refused to for whatever reason. Mariah's face darkened.

"Danny, stand aside. We'll talk about this later," Mariah growled. Danny remained firm.

"No. Mariah, you're not in charge here. Answer my questions," Danny demanded. Mariah looked like she'd been slapped.

"Not in charge? This is my castle! You will obey me!" Mariah shouted furiously. Danny tensed and built up the energy he needed to form a shield, ready in case Mariah let her anger get the better of her. He was able to form the green ghost shield just in time before Mariah lunged at them.

 **And Danny has stood up to Mariah. Let me know what you think of the story so far.**

 **Don't forget to check out my website or facebook page for the advert for the next fanfic. There's links to both in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	27. Chapter 27

Sam flinched when she saw Mariah pounce towards Danny. She was awe-struck. Danny was standing up against Mariah for them. To him, they were strangers. To him Mariah was his friend, ally, his queen. She couldn't help but feel hopeful that maybe Danny was turning back to their side after all. There was hope. Sam opened her eyes to see a rippling green ghost shield around her, the others, the skeletons and Danny. Mariah was hitting the shield with her dagger. She screamed at him in outrage. Danny, however, remained firm. Sam realised that he didn't want to fight Mariah but he did want to protect her, Tucker and his parents.

Mariah took a step back, puffing breathlessly.

"Alright, Danny. We'll talk now. I'll send the prisoners back to their cell," Mariah relented. Danny didn't move, he kept the shield going.

"No, they stay here. Mariah, I want to make sure you don't do something you'll regret if your anger gets the best of you again," Danny replied firmly. Sam glanced at Maddie beside her. The woman looked fearful and shocked by how Danny was acting. He was so forceful and firm, a side they rarely saw.

Mariah frowned and nodded slowly.

"Very well," she agreed. Danny gave her a curt nod and allowed the shield to dissipate. However suddenly there was an explosion above them and a female figure dressed in red and black flew through a hole in the wall on a hover board.

"Nobody move! Let my friends go!" the figure demanded. If Sam could have moved her arms, she would've slapped her forehead in annoyance. Leave it to Valerie to make a bad situation worse once Danny finally managed to calm Mariah down.

Mariah scowled.

"You see Danny, your reluctance to act has caused this to happen," Mariah pointed out. Danny frowned.

"Actually, if we'd done what I suggested in the first place, this wouldn't have happened. Your plan would have made this worse," Danny contradicted sternly.

"Release my friends!" Valerie demanded, pointing a gun at Mariah and hesitantly pointing another in Danny's general direction.

"As you wish," Mariah replied with a dark grin. She flew forwards towards the humans again. Danny's eyes widened in surprise and instinctively fired a ghost ray at Mariah, throwing her off course. She fell to the ground and looked up at Danny, outraged.

Danny returned her glare.

"I told you Mariah, if you attack them, I'm not going through with the wedding," Danny reminded her and put his hand to the crown. Mariah suddenly looked fearful.

"Danny, don't. Think about what you're saying. Without you the Ghost Zone will fall into ruin," Mariah informed him desperately. Danny raised an eyebrow.

"It's been alright without a king for centuries. I think it can cope without me being king," Danny commented and in one motion grabbed the crown and dropped it to the ground.

Danny's head exploded in a blinding pain. His vision blurred and his hearing vanished. He stumbled back a few steps and fell into the wall beside the humans and ghostly skeletons. He leant against it, breathing laboured and uneven. He struggled to keep conscious. Slowly his hearing returned.

"I did warn him not to take off the crown," Mariah commented as she got back to her feet and brushed dirt off her dress.

"What did you do to him ghost!" Valerie demanded.

"I did nothing. It's a side-effect of removing the crown. It was designed to repress his memories so that he'd trust me. He'll fall unconscious soon and his mind will retrieve the memories. However all I have to do is return the crown and get rid of you. I don't know how you found my castle, but you'll regret that you did," Mariah explained. She then snapped her fingers and the messenger leapt up into the air and charged at Valerie. Valerie fired three ecto-charged shots at the ghost before flying out of the throne room. The messenger followed Valerie.

Mariah turned to the captive humans staring at her fearfully. They struggled desperately against the bony arms holding them in place. Danny opened his eyes and took a breath. He was more confused than ever and his headache was unbearable. But he had listened to Mariah. She tricked him. She used him. She tried to control him. These people were important to him. He realised that now and regretted listening to Mariah. He had to make this right. He had to protect them. He nodded to himself and pushed himself off the wall and flew straight at Mariah before she could get within range to hurt the humans.

Mariah cried out in surprise as Danny barrelled into her. He turned and shot the skeleton guards holding his true allies in place into rubble. It was a risky move, especially considering that he could barely see straight. He turned back to Mariah and shifted into a defensive stance. Mariah growled at him furiously.

"How? You should be unconscious by now," Mariah commented to herself.

"Might be something to do with the fact that I know the truth now. I'm not letting you hurt them," Danny snarled. Honestly he didn't know how he was still conscious, the headache alone was probably enough to knock him out. Add that to how dizzy and disoriented he felt… it amazed him too.

Mariah gritted her teeth and then pressed a hidden button on her dagger. It glowed brightly and expanded from a dagger and into a massive sword.

"If you refuse to join me, then I'm forced to eradicate you," Mariah decided and swung the sword at Danny.

 **Just want to clarify this, Danny doesn't remember Sam, Tucker, his parents or his past. He's still the same Danny that crept down to the dungeons. But he's made the step and turned against Mariah.**

 **Not much left of the story now. Make sure to check out the advert for the next fanfic before the first chapter is posted at the end of this story. The video can be found on my facebook and website. There are links to both in my bio.**

 **So with that said, until the next chapter.**


	28. Chapter 28

Danny jumped back out of the way of the blade. He turned for a moment to see the humans staring at him.

"Run. Your weapons are in a storage room down the hall on the right," he yelled to them before firing a ghost ray at Mariah. This broke them out of their trance. They ran to the door and heaved it open and ran down the hall, peering into every door to their right. Danny wasn't treating them like he would normally but he was treating them as allies. It was an improvement.

They found the storage room and with a sigh of relief they grabbed their weapons and ran back to the throne room to help. They pushed open the door to see Danny being thrown across the room. He had a bad cut to his left arm and his right leg had a scratch on it. He slammed into the wall and crumpled to the ground. Mariah loomed over him and pulled her sword out ready to deal a killing blow.

"You forget that you needed an ecto-suit to defeat my brother. You cannot to defeat me," Mariah remarked.

Then Sam recalled something. Mariah had said that Danny was stronger now than he was when he fought Pariah Dark. It was true. When Danny faced Pariah Dark, he hadn't had his ghostly wail or his ice powers. He was still working on learning to duplicate. He couldn't use his ghost energy to levitate things like he could now. Danny was stronger than before. Also Mariah had said something about Danny being outmatched with her brother because of the Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire. Danny could defeat her and Mariah knew it. She was banking on the fact that Danny couldn't remember his powers.

"Danny! You can use a ghostly wail! You have ice powers! You can beat her!" Sam screamed to him before Mariah threw her sword down. She impaled Danny through the stomach. He gasped before looking up at Mariah. He heard Sam and he took the deepest breath he could muster despite the pain and confusion. He then let the breath out with an explosion of power. Mariah was caught off guard and was thrown across the throne room into the opposite wall.

Maddie scowled at the queen and withdrew a working prototype of a miniature Fenton Thermos and sucked the queen inside. Then they ran to Danny's side. The sword was still sticking out of his stomach and the ground was quickly becoming covered in a puddle of ectoplasm. Danny was struggling to stay awake.

"Danny? Can you hear me?" Sam asked, crouching beside him and gently pulling Danny's face to look at her. He nodded slowly at her. Sam smiled weakly at him and blinked away the tears that threatened to fall. Emotions were running high. She turned to Tucker.

He nodded grimly and ran over to a wall and cautiously walked through it before disappearing off to look for the Speeder and Jazz and Nurse Green.

"Sweetheart, you need to stay with us alright," Maddie whispered to Danny.

"Hard to focus. Still confused," he managed weakly. He closed his eyes.

"No! Danny stay awake. Tucker's gone to find Nurse Green. She'll help you. But you need to stay ghost until then," Sam ordered him. Danny opened his eyes and nodded slowly.

"Sorry for listening to Mariah," Danny muttered weakly. Sam shook her head.

"Son, she fooled you. It wasn't your fault," Jack attempted.

Danny nodded slowly but Sam wasn't sure if he believed that.

"How much did you hear in the dungeon?" Maddie asked. Danny smiled weakly.

"Not much. Something about not liking Dash. Then about how you were going to ask me why I wanted to be king. Something about an argument and Frostbite," Danny recalled tiredly.

"Did it work then?" Maddie pressed. They had to keep him talking. He chuckled softly.

"Yeah, I guess it did. Got me thinking. That's why Mariah," Danny began and started to trail off. Sam slapped him gently on the face.

"Come on Danny stay awake," she urged. He opened his eyes again and nodded.

"That's why Mariah brought you here. She found out I'd been down to you guys," Danny resumed weakly.

Suddenly they heard footsteps running to them, the door creaked open and in ran Tucker, Nurse Green, Jazz and Bianca. Nurse Green stopped for a moment when she saw Danny and quickly assessed his wounds. She nodded grimly and turned to Tucker.

"Go help your friend. The messenger is fast. But if you tell her that the queen has been defeated, she may stop," Nurse Green informed Tucker. He nodded and ran out of the room. Nurse Green then walked purposefully over to Danny and gently pulled Sam away.

"Bring the Speeder closer," she ordered Sam. Sam tore her gaze away from Danny and nodded slowly before running out of the room.

"Jazz, take your parents away. This isn't going to be pretty," Nurse Green commanded and she nodded to Bianca.

"Take her as well," Nurse Green added. Jazz nodded slowly and did as the ghost told her.

 **Nurse Green to the rescue! Sorry, I just had to say it. But we're getting close to the end now.**

 **Let me know what you think so far.**

 **Don't forget to check out the advert for the winner of the poll. It can be found on both my facebook page and on my website. There's links to both in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	29. Chapter 29

Once the humans had left, Nurse Green turned to Danny. He'd closed his eyes again.

"Danny, stay awake for me. I need to assess the wound in your ghost form first. Then you can rest," Nurse Green urged him. Danny opened his eyes and nodded slowly.

"This is going to hurt a lot, but I need to remove the sword. Try to stay awake," Nurse Green warned as she turned to the sword impaling Danny. He nodded again and gritted his teeth, ready to handle the pain. It couldn't be worse than getting stabbed had been right?

He was wrong. It was ten times as painful. He screamed in agony as the sword was eased out of his body. Danny nearly wanted the ghost to just rip it out but he vaguely realised that she was trying to avoid making any more damage. Unfortunately the sword couldn't be made intangible for some unknown reason. Then the pain lessened slightly and he heard a clatter as the sword was dropped on the stone ground. Without the sword to stop the bleeding, the wound was flooded with ectoplasm and the puddle grew larger even faster than before. Nurse Green pulled her large bag over to her and quickly withdrew a bundle of gauze and pressed it down on his wound. He whimpered in pain but was too weak to move away.

Nurse Green looked sadly at her patient and then pulled his arm to his wound.

"Apply as much pressure as you can. I'm going to turn the area around your wound invisible to get a better look at how deep it is and how much damage has been done," Nurse Green explained and Danny pressed down on his wound. He yelped at the pressure but fought through the pain and did as she asked. She nodded to him and placed a hand on his body and turned him partially invisible. She cast an expert eye over the wound and then realised that the sword had gone all the way through. She needed to address the wound through his back as well but Danny would have to move for her to do so. Something he couldn't do as he was so weak. If he was conscious, moving him would cause him a lot of pain.

She bit her lip and nodded to herself.

"Stay still, and keep pressure on that wound. I'm just going to get someone to help me," Nurse Green informed him.

"I'm not going anywhere," he whispered with a slight smile. Nurse Green smiled warmly at him. He was incredibly strong willed. Nurse Green quickly ran out of the room and spotted Jazz and her parents and Bianca sitting on the ground.

"Has something happened? We heard his yell," Maddie asked concerned. Nurse Green shook her head.

"That's not why I'm here. I need a helper. Danny is going to pass out any minute but I need help in bandaging his wounds," Nurse Green explained to them quickly. Maddie got to her feet.

"Just tell me what to do," she replied sternly. Nurse Green smiled.

"I wouldn't ask if I could help it. Thank you. Come in quickly," Nurse Green retorted softly and led the way into the throne room.

Nurse Green rushed back to Danny's side. He wasn't applying enough pressure to his wound. His white glove was stained green and his face was pale and drawn. Nurse Green fell to her knees and pressed down on his wound. He hissed in pain. Maddie joined her. She instantly stroked Danny's face and began to soothe him like only a mother could.

"Apply pressure here…" Nurse Green ordered.

"Call me Maddie. Like this," Maddie replied and pushed down on the wound. Danny moaned. Nurse Green nodded then pulled out another bundle of gauze and turning her arm intangible pressed the second bundle on his wound through his back. Danny groaned again before relaxing. White light flashed as he reverted to his human form.

Maddie gasped in fright.

"It's alright. I can still treat him. I examined the wound while he was in his ghost form. I know what I'm dealing with. I'll double check to ensure there isn't a difference in his human form, but I should be able to help him either way," Nurse Green reassured her. Maddie nodded slowly.

"Keep applying pressure. I'm going to move him so both of us can reach his wound on his back. The sword went all the way through. Both wounds need to be kept under pressure," Nurse Green explained, noticing the Maddie wasn't applying as much pressure as before. The green puddle of ectoplasm was suddenly streaked with red and Danny's blood mixed with it as Nurse Green carefully manipulated Danny into a better position.

She told Maddie to apply pressure to Danny's second wound as the ghost pulled dressings and bandages out of her large medical bag. Nurse Green quickly and expertly dressed both wounds and wrapped bandages around Danny's middle, turning her or Danny intangible to do so at times. Once the wounds were bandaged Nurse Green turned Danny's top intangible and pulled it away. It was stained with blood and ectoplasm. Particularly on the back. Nurse Green hadn't removed it before, because it hadn't been a problem. But now, it was. Together Maddie and Nurse Green moved Danny away from the red and green puddle of his blood and Nurse Green waved Maddie away.

"Thank you Maddie, I can handle the rest. I'll not ask you to be here for the rest," Nurse Green informed the mother.

Maddie wanted to argue but knew that Nurse Green wouldn't have it. Seeing Danny bleeding so much and in pain was hard for Maddie. It would be hard for any mother. Maddie wordlessly walked out of the room, clutching Danny's stained shirt in her hands. Nurse Green would help him. Maddie had to believe that.

 **So, yeah, bit gory but what did you expect when he's been impaled with a sword.**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	30. Chapter 30

Everyone looked up when Maddie exited the throne room. First thing Sam noticed was Danny's shirt in Maddie's hands. It was stained with an alarming amount of red blood.

"How is he?" Jazz asked softly. Maddie shook her head and sat down on the ground beside Jack. She took a deep breath.

"He's unconscious now. He fell unconscious almost as soon as I got there. There were two wounds. The sword… it went all the way through. We stopped the bleeding and Nurse Green told me to go. Said that she could manage the rest by herself," Maddie whispered, shivering at the memory of the puddle of blood Danny had been in. Jack draped a comfortingly arm around his wife and pulled her close. She didn't resist.

Sam frowned and turned to the messenger. Once she had heard that the queen had been trapped in a thermos, she had stopped fighting and offered to wait with them. Everyone had been too worried and frightened for Danny to object. But this had all started because of her message over the parade. Without that message, they would never had opened the portal. Mariah wouldn't have been able to come through and Danny wouldn't have been stabbed, brainwashed and stabbed again. Sam shook her head. There was no point on dwelling on what had happened. She should be trying to stay strong for Danny and his family. That was her job as his girlfriend. She looked down at her jacket and nodded to herself. Talking. They needed to talk about something.

"Valerie, how long ago was the parade?" Sam asked as loudly and clearly as she could. Valerie looked up, surprised.

"Two days ago," Valerie answered. Sam nodded. They'd been in the Ghost Zone for a day.

"How many ghost attacks?" Sam inquired, hoping someone else would see what she was doing and join in. Valerie nodded.

"Not many. Skulker turned up this morning. And there were a few ghost animals last night, but that's all," Valerie recalled.

"Skulker?" Tucker repeated. Valerie laughed, it was forced but it lightened the mood.

"Yeah, he was really angry about something. Was shouting about it being Danny's fault that he missed his prey. He wanted revenge on him," Valerie explained.

"Danny's fault?" Jazz echoed in a confused tone. Sam laughed, a small but genuine one.

"He must have said something to Ember and she ruined Skulker's hunt," Sam guessed. Tucker snapped his fingers.

"That's right, he was talking to Ember before this all happened," Tucker recalled with a smile.

"Would he do that?" Bianca asked, the first she'd spoken in a long time. Sam nodded.

"He loves messing with his enemies. He usually only does it in fights though," Sam affirmed with a smile. They lapsed into recalling funny stories for Bianca of some of Danny's more memorable ghost fights. Even Maddie and Jack and Valerie joined in with stories they'd heard or even been part of. Valerie recalling when Skulker kidnapped her and Danny during that health sciences project with the sack of flour. Thinking back even stories like that were funny.

The mood lightened a lot. They were still worried about Danny but at least they weren't going mad with fear and uncertainty. Sam smirked. Danny always kept things as light as possible, joking, witty banter and so on. It was one of the things Sam loved about him. Tucker was recounting the first time they met Ember when the door to the throne room creaked open.

Maddie, Jack, Jazz and Sam were on their feet in seconds, crowding over to Nurse Green for news.

"How is he?" Maddie asked over the questions thrown at the ghost. Nurse Green held her hands up to calm everyone.

"I've treated his wounds. He's resting. I want to let him rest for a little while and let him start healing before moving him anymore than I have. But he should be fine," Nurse Green informed them.

"Will he be alright after what Mariah did to him?" Sam inquired cautiously. Nurse Green shrugged.

"We won't know that until he wakes up. I'm a nurse not a psychologist," Nurse Green answered.

 **So, Danny is on the mend. They're still concerned about his mind, because even though Mariah explained the crown, they're hardly going to believe her…**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far.**

 **There's only a couple more chapters left so make sure to check out the advert for the next fanfic, which will be posted when I've finished this one. You can find it either on my facebook page or website. There's links to both in my bio.**

 **Anyway, until the next chapter.**


	31. Chapter 31

Danny opened his eyes slowly. It was very bright. He blinked and then scanned the room. He was in his bedroom back in Amity Park. He shut his eyes and smiled to himself. That nightmare was over. He could now remember everything. Including what he'd done when he'd thought Mariah was his friend. The time he'd spent with the crown on felt fuzzy, like a dream, and things were a little unclear. But he knew what he'd done, things he'd said. He could recall his fight with Mariah. Mostly it was a blur since his eye sight had been so unfocused, but he remembered Mariah stabbing him in his stomach with blinding clarity.

He vaguely remembered what had happened after that. The pain had been excruciating. He could barely remember what had been said to people. He remembered that Nurse Green had gone for help. He wondered who had helped her. It was probably one of his friends or family. It wouldn't have been Tucker. He wasn't great in those situations. Jazz maybe. He hoped it wasn't Sam. He was so out of it that he was afraid he might have said or done things in his confusion and pain that he'd regret. Now that he thought about it, he remembered the name Maddie being mentioned. Maybe his mom had helped Nurse Green, it made the most sense.

He heard footsteps outside his room he opened his eyes and saw Sam and Jazz walk in. They froze before Jazz rushed back out, shouting that he was awake. Sam sat beside him and smiled at him.

"How do you feel? What do you remember?" Sam asked.

"I feel fine. What happened?" Dany replied and then trying to lighten the mood decided to play a little trick on his girlfriend.

"You're my friend right?" He added carefully. Sam looked shocked and leaned forward.

"Friend? What's the last thing you remember? About me and Tucker and Jazz and your parents?" Sam inquired worriedly. Danny tried to sit up but his stomach burned in pain. He groaned involuntarily. Sam leant further forward to help him. He took the opportunity and kissed her on the lips. She froze and sank into the kiss. Before she realised what had happened and then pulled away.

"I remember everything Sam," he informed her and began to laugh softly.

Sam scowled at him and punched him in the shoulder.

"You idiot! That wasn't funny! We've been worried sick about you," Sam shouted angrily at him.

"Oh Sam, lighten up. I'm fine. I did say that first," Danny reminded her as his laughter subsided and he rubbed his shoulder.

"What's going on?" Jazz asked as she hurried back into the room.

"Danny's back to normal," Sam announced, still annoyed at his prank.

"Oh come on Sam, give it time and you'll be laughing too," Danny called after her as she left the room, unknown to Danny, to call Valerie and Tucker. His parents walked into the room at that moment.

"How do you feel?" Maddie asked, frowning at the little exchange between Sam and Danny. Danny shrugged and attempted to sit up. He hissed in pain again.

"I'm fine," he managed but his face screwed up in agony gave him away. Nurse Green phased into the room and rushed to Danny and gently pushed him back down before his family could react.

"You need your rest. That means staying in bed," Nurse Green scolded him. Danny laid back down and took a few deep breaths.

"Nurse Green? What are you doing here? I thought that you didn't know your way to the human world," Danny eventually said. The ghost smiled at him and nodded.

"I was brought here by your family and friends in the Spectre Speeder. I'm here to help get you back to health," Nurse Green answered.

Danny frowned.

"I'm fine," he insisted and started to sit up again. Nurse Green pushed him back down.

"No, you're not. Don't make me tie you to this bed Danny," Nurse Green retorted sternly. Danny raised an eyebrow.

"You wouldn't," Danny remarked with a smile.

"I will if you refuse to rest. I treat ghosts Danny, I have a few tricks up my sleeve," Nurse Green replied and gave him a smile in return.

"Everyone out, while I check his progress," Nurse Green decided and ushered his parents and sister out of the room. She then turned to Danny.

"Alright, change back to your ghost form and let's see how things are healing up," Nurse Green commanded Danny.

Tucker and Valerie arrived within a few minutes to see Jazz, Sam, Bianca, Maddie and Jack gathered outside Danny's bedroom.

"Why are you all waiting here?" Valerie asked.

"Nurse Green is checking Danny," Sam answered. She'd already forgiven Danny for the joke. In fact she had started to see the funny side of it.

"This will sting," Nurse Green's voice warned. Danny hissed in pain as Nurse Green treated a small wound on his arm.

"Yeah, no kidding," he snapped.

"Ready?" Nurse Green's voice inquired and turned to the wound through his stomach. Danny choked out a curse word a second later. Maddie scowled but decided to let it slide this time.

A few minutes later Nurse Green opened the door and nodded to the crowd of visitors.

"Try not to crowd him. And keep him in bed at least until tomorrow morning. I have to get back to the Ghost Zone," Nurse Green informed them with a smile.

"Hey, Nurse Green? Thanks for everything!" Danny called to her. She turned and nodded to him before phasing through the floor and down to the lab.

He frowned.

"Is the portal still open?" Danny asked. He was still in his ghost form. Nurse Green had helped him to sit up in the least painful position possible. Jack grinned at his son and nodded.

"Yeah, we'll close it in a bit. Don't worry we input Nurse Green's ecto-signature into the weapons as a friend and they won't attack her now," Jack assured his son. Danny nodded.

"How long was I out?" Danny inquired as the humans all filed in.

"Only one night. We got back late last night. We were all in the Ghost Zone for two days, one night though," Tucker answered. Danny smiled. Maddie raised an eyebrow at her son as he let his head rest against the wall behind him. He was exhausted. Whatever Nurse Green had done to help him, had worn him out.

"Alright, one more question and then you need to get some rest," Maddie decided. Danny raised an eyebrow but didn't object.

"Alright. What happened from the moment Mariah took me, to the moment I woke up just now," Danny asked and gave her a mischievous grin. Maddie frowned at him but didn't say anything. Tucker began the story.

 **And so the main story line is finished. One more chapter, half wrapping things up, half epilogue.**

 **Let me know what you think of the story though.**

 **Tomorrow, the first chapter of the next fanfic will posted. So check out my advert for it. It's on both my facebook page and 's links to both in my bio.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	32. Chapter 32

Bianca padded into the kitchen the next morning and opened the fridge, and as per Danny's warning, checked to see if the milk was glowing and then sniffed it.

"Morning," Danny greeted her. Bianca nearly dropped the milk. She turned to the kitchen table and saw Danny sitting there casually typing away on his laptop. Bianca gaped at him.

"Cups are in the cupboard to your left," Danny remarked, smirking at her expression. She put down the milk carefully and turned back to him.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Bianca managed. Danny smirked.

"I could be doing worse things. I could be checking Amity Park for any ghosts around but instead I'm updating my ghost files. Besides I'm fine. Nurse Green really knows what she's doing," Danny reassured her. Bianca sat opposite him and frowned at him.

He avoided her gaze, preferring to continue what he was doing.

"Thought you were going to use the milk," Danny remarked after a long silence. Bianca scowled at him but returned to making her morning coffee.

"You should be in bed," Bianca attempted. Danny laughed.

"Better than you have tried to get me to take it easy Bianca. Trust me, I'm fine," Danny assured her good-naturedly. Bianca sat back down at the kitchen table now with a steaming cup of coffee and watched Danny carefully. Any sign of discomfort, she'd use that to send him to bed. He was her friend's little brother after all. But he really did seem fine.

Bianca looked away from Danny when she heard someone enter the kitchen.

"Morning Jazz," Danny greeted his sister without looking up. Bianca stared at him in surprise. He felt her stare and smirked.

"You never hear Jazz get up, dad sounds like an elephant and mom, you can hear her get up if you're quiet," Danny answered her unasked question, not looking up from his laptop for a moment.

"Danny, you shouldn't be up," Jazz commented and gave her friend a slight scowl.

"She tried Jazz. Besides I'm kind of expecting someone," Danny interjected as he shut down the laptop.

Jazz raised an eyebrow.

"Expecting someone? Like who?" Jazz questioned sceptically. Danny's ghost sense went off. He smiled grimly.

"Whelp!" a voice growled.

"Him," Danny answered and got to his feet and willed a band of white light to appear around his middle. The light split and travelled up and down his body changing his usual jeans, red sneakers and red and white shirt, a spare, into his black and white jumpsuit. His eyes changed from a natural blue to a piercing green and his black hair changed to a brilliant white. His body glowed softly.

"Hey, Skulker, I hear that your hunt didn't go so well," Danny remarked with a smirk.

Bianca turned to see a robotic ghost wearing tight fitting trousers, tank top and combat boots. He had flaming green hair and a goatee.

"Exactly. You cost me a pelt. You will replace it," Skulker growled furiously. Skulker then lunged at Danny and Danny managed to turn them both intangible before they crashed through the wall. Jazz and Bianca looked at each other and rushed outside to see Danny and Skulker circling each other in the air above the house.

"I heard about your run in with Mariah Dark, whelp. First chasing the Box Ghost of all ghosts for two days and then being kidnapped by her. You're losing your touch ghost child," Skulker commented with a sneer.

"Note to self, hit the Box Ghost for spreading that," Danny muttered to himself angrily.

"What's going on?!" Sam called as she ran down the street towards Fenton Works.

"Skulker's picking a fight," Jazz informed her.

Sam joined the two older girls and watched the ghost fight above them. Skulker grinned at Danny and darted forwards and punched Danny in the stomach.

"Which means you're weaker than usual," Skulker remarked continuing his train of thought. Danny doubled over and held his stomach. Bianca and Jazz gasped and Jazz made to run indoors but Sam stopped her with a hand on Jazz's shoulder.

"He's fine. He's just faking," Sam assured them.

"Faking?" Bianca repeated. Sam smirked, not taking her eyes off her boyfriend.

"Yep, I can see his smile from here. I told you, he likes to mess with his enemies, especially in a fight," Sam elaborated.

Skulker sniggered evilly and loomed over Danny. He pulled out a gun and pointed it at Danny.

"Finally," he chuckled to himself. But Danny flipped over and kicked Skulker in the chest, catching him off guard and throwing the hunter to the ground.

"That was a cheap shot Skulker," Danny remarked with a scowl.

"What? But… but you're injured," Skulker spluttered. Danny smirked at him.

"Nope, had a little visit from Nurse Green, now… er… crud," Danny trailed off as he felt his waist for his trusty thermos, only to find that it wasn't there. Jazz slapped her forehead.

"And that's why I constantly nag him to always have a thermos with him," She grumbled to herself.

Skulker grinned.

"Looks like you're losing your touch still whelp," Skulker commented and charged at Danny. Danny scowled at Skulker and dodged and punched Skulker in the side. Danny then darted away and disappeared inside the house. Skulker chased Danny. The three girls shared a look before running into the house after the two ghosts.

"Ghost!" Jack exclaimed. The girls ran upstairs and saw Danny kick Skulker into a wall and pull out a thermos he'd found and pointed it at Skulker.

"I really don't get why you're angry at me Skulker, Ember was the one who listened to me," Danny remarked as Skulker was engulfed in a blue light and was pulled into the thermos, kicking and screaming.

Maddie and Jack scrambled out of their bedroom, half asleep holding ghost weapons.

"Where is he?" Jack demanded. Danny hid the thermos behind his back.

"Sorry dad, he got away. I sent him packing," Danny apologised. Jack looked crestfallen.

"Aw, I really wanted a ghost to do target practice on," Jack complained and shuffled back to bed. Maddie glared at Danny.

"You should be recovering," Maddie reminded him. He gave her a crooked smile and shrugged.

"What are you going to do? I feel better and Amity Park needed Danny Phantom," Danny remarked.

Maddie scowled at him but returned to her room. Danny sighed in relief and turned to the girls watching him.

"Don't start Jazz," Danny warned her, seeing that she was ready to lecture him on not having a thermos. Jazz scowled at him as he sank through the floor to return Skulker to the Ghost Zone.

"Well, things are back to normal at least," Sam commented with a smile.

"Normal?" Bianca repeated incredulously.

"Don't worry, you get used to it," Jazz reassured her friend before Bianca went to get dressed.

"What happened to Mariah anyway?" Sam asked suddenly. Jazz shrugged.

"Last I saw, mom had her in the new prototype thermos. Maybe dad will get his new target ghost after all," Jazz answered. Sam frowned.

"Don't tell Danny. Knowing him he'll try and save the witch," Sam decided and stomped downstairs to spend some time with Danny after the ordeal they'd been through. Jazz smirked. It was always interesting when Jazz visited home. However hopefully this spring break would be quieter from now on.

 **And that is that. I think that's all the loose ends cleared up. Oh, er… Frostbite. They told him after they got Danny home… now they're cleared up.**

 **Anyway, I'd like to thank anyone that read the whole story and I hope you found it enjoyable. Let me know what you thought of it now that's it's all done and dusted. This was a story buried in my archives and I have improved a lot since I wrote this. Especially when it comes to writing lengthy chapters. But I'm glad to have finally posted it up for you guys.**

 **I'd also like to take them time to thank everyone who left a review and invite you to check out my website for my spot reviews. It might take a few days but some of my favourite reviews from this fanfic will be put there soon. There's a link in my bio.**

 **The first chapter of the next fanfic will be posted shortly. Don't forget to check out my facebook page and the advert in the meantime. There's a link in my bio.**

 **I can't think of anything else to say so I guess I'll sign off.**

 **Until the next fanfic.**


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